Second Impressions
by BluEyes1120
Summary: After her parents divorce and she lost her high school sweetheart, Trish decides there's nothing left at home for her and she needs a fresh start. Somewhere new, some place where no one knew her. She moved, graduated college, got a great job, and gained a best friend. Her boyfriend was a jerk, but he could change. Life was good. And then he showed up... AU: No wrestling story line
1. Chapter 1

**AN: I was daydreaming the other day and this came to me. I decided to put it up and see what you guys think. Should I continue it or no? Reviews are appreciated. Thanks for reading. Enjoy!**

**Randy/OC eventually John/Trish, Miz. Might add more as I go, but I'm unsure right now.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Trish sat mindlessly tapping the pen in her hand on her notepad. She glanced at the clock on her computer. 4:55pm it read. _Thank god. Only five more minutes_, she thought to herself. Just then, her cell phone vibrated on her desk. She picked it up and tapped the screen. It was a text message from her boyfriend, Jason. She clicked on the envelope and the message popped up.

_Sorry baby, I have to cancel our date tonight. Got stuck working a double shift again. I'm so sorry. I was looking forward to seeing you. I'll make it up to you next weekend, I swear – J_

She rolled her eyes and dropped her phone. She let out a loud sigh, and began putting her things away. She pulled her purse out of her desk and locked her desk. She clocked out, turned off her computer, and said goodbye to her boss, Mr. Lynch, as she headed out. She walked to her black 2012 Dodge Charger, unlocked the door, and slid into the driver's seat. She put the key in the ignition, but didn't start the car yet. "Yeah right... You're sorry; you were looking forward to seeing me... Same excuses all the time." She shook her head. She was used to Jason letting her down, and lately it was more and more and more. She could count the number of times she'd seen him on one hand in the last month. Jason was never a very good boyfriend, and she often found herself asking why she was even with him. Lately, she was hard pressed to come up with a reason, or an excuse for that matter. She sighed again and turned on her car. She turned on the radio and began searching the stations until she found something suitable to listen to. Ciara's _Like A Boy_ came through her speakers, and she stopped channel surfing.

_Wish we could switch up the roles  
And I could be that...  
Tell you I love you  
But when you call I never get back  
Would you ask them questions like me?  
Like where you be at?_

"Ain't that the truth," she scoffed. She put her car into reverse and backed out of the parking spot. She then put her car in drive and began her drive home.

* * *

About twenty minutes later, she pulled into the driveway of the complex where she shared an apartment with her best friend, Chrissy. She had met Chrissy when they were both in college. They were roommates their freshman year. They quickly bonded and had been inseparable ever since. Halfway through their junior year they had decided to get an apartment together.

Chrissy knew everything about Trish, and Trish likewise knew everything about Chrissy. Chrissy knew that after graduating high school, Trish had decided she needed to get away from the place she'd grown up and opted for sunny, warm, Florida. Her parent's relationship was a strained one. Her father traveled a lot for work, leaving Trish and her mother alone for weeks at a time. This caused friction between Trish's parents. Her mother would accuse her father of cheating which would always lead to screaming matches between her parents. Eventually it lead to her parents divorcing. Her father took a new position in New York and Trish's relationship with him became virtually nonexistent. Trish's mother wasted little time getting remarried. Her mother became so wrapped up in her new husband that Trish became a roommate, she couldn't wait for graduation so she could get out.

Nearing the end of her senior year her high school sweetheart had decided he didn't want to be tied down anymore and that he wanted to experience life without a girlfriend for awhile. He told her that they had been together for four years, but he wanted to experience single life. He wanted to go off to college and party and do his thing, single. He didn't want to have to worry about the commitment of a girlfriend bogging him down, so they broke off their relationship two months before graduation. In light of all the negative events that had taken place in her life, she had decided there wasn't anything left at home for her anymore and she wanted a fresh start. She wanted to go somewhere that no one knew her and she knew no one.

After settling in Tampa, Trish had enrolled in Stetson University, and a few years later she was a proud graduate. She had gotten lucky; the lawyer's office who let her intern at his firm during her college days had kept her on after her graduation. She enjoyed working with him and learning from him. He was the best boss she had ever had. She turned off her car and got out. She slowly walked to the door. She really didn't want to hear the ear beating she knew she was going to get from her best friend. She heard the same thing every time Jason bailed on her for one lame reason or another. Sighing again, she stuck her key in the door and pushed it open. She kicked off her high heels, and then walked into the living room.

"What the hell are you doing home?" Chrissy asked, even though she already knew the answer.

Trish frowned and sat down on the couch. "Jason has to work a double tonight."

"Again?"

"Yeah... Again…"

Chrissy shook her head. "Oh all of the sudden he's got to work a double?... Again… Or so he says!"

Trish sighed. "That's what he said."

"Oh wow. He at least called you this time? He usually doesn't have the common courtesy to even call you."

"Well... He didn't call... He texted me."

"Are you serious? He texted you? What a jackass!" Chrissy exclaimed in disgust. "When did he tell you this?"

"4:55."

"Are you serious? He's such an asshole! He waited until 4:55 to tell you he 'has to work a double'? Come on! Like they waited to tell him five minutes before he was done he had to stay..."

"Can we drop this conversation?" Trish asked, cutting off her friend's tirade.

"Fine," Chrissy answered, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in disgust.

"So, how was your day?"

With that, Chrissy perked up. "Oh my god! I forgot to tell you! I was going to call you, but then I remembered you were going on a date with douche..."

"Chrissy..." Trish cut her off.

"Sorry. I remembered you were going on a date so I decided I'd wait until I saw you to tell you."

"Okay..." Trish answered with a chuckle. "So tell me."

"We got a new personal trainer at my gym today," Chrissy answered with a big smile.

"Oh did you?"

"Oh we did!"

Trish laughed at her friend's giddiness. "And what about this new personal trainer?"

"He's suuuuuuper hot!" Chrissy squealed.

"Is he?" Trish asked with a chuckle.

"Oh my god yes! He's 6'5", brown hair, these beautiful blue eyes, muscles, and my god... these tattoos." Chrissy leaned her head back against the couch. "He's absolutely beautiful!"

"Hmmm... He sounds dreamy," Trish teased as she threw one of the pillows on the couch at her friend. "I might have to come down one day with you and see him."

Chrissy grinned. "I think you should come down! But I think you had better keep your eyes off my man," she teased, throwing the pillow back at her friend. "You can look at his friend. One of his friends came in today to see him. He was absolutely gorgeous too!"

"I _have_ a boyfriend," Trish reminded Chrissy.

Chrissy's face scrunched up in a scowl. "You need to drop that looser."

Trish sighed loudly, _here we go again_, she thought. "I'm going to go take a shower." She got up off the couch and headed down the hallway towards her bedroom.

"You know I'm right!" Chrissy called after her.

* * *

Trish hadn't heard from Jason since the text he'd sent her Friday letting her know he wasn't going to be able to make their date. It was now the following Wednesday. She had sent him several texts and called him many times, all to no avail. Trish stood outside for a quick mid-morning break, enjoying the warm, sunny Florida weather. She pulled out her phone and dialed Jason's number. After a few seconds, the phone began to ring and she patiently waited.

"Hey this is Jason; I can't get to my phone. Leave your name, number, and a message, and I'll get back to ya... Later…"

She sighed loudly and hung up, not bothering to leave a message. "Figures." She turned and headed back into the office. Tears welled up in her sapphire blue eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She blinked them away and sat back down at her desk.

"Everything okay?" her boss, Mr. Lynch asked.

"Oh yes Mr. Lynch, I'm fine."

He placed a hand on her shoulder and gently squeezed. "I'm a good listener and I've been told I give good advice once or twice in my life," he said with a smile. His salt and pepper hair was a disheveled mess, but his brown eyes were soft with sincerity.

She smiled at him. "Thank you Mr. Lynch. I appreciate it." He smiled back at her then headed back into his office. It felt good to know Mr. Lynch cared. He had really taken her under his wing since she'd started at his law firm. He'd become almost a father figure to her now. A few minutes later her phone vibrated on her desk. She picked it up and read the message.

_Hey babe, sorry I couldn't answer. I'm so busy with work it's ridiculous. I'll call you as soon as I get a chance. Love you – J_

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I had better not hold my breath... I'll turn blue before you actually call me." She debated on answering him or not and quickly decided against it. "I'm not even gonna waste my time." She clicked off her conversation, or lack there of, with Jason and clicked on Chrissy's name.

_Hey girl – T_

_Hey momma, what's up? – C_

_So I just heard from Jason... – T_

_Oh yeah? It's only been 5 days. What did that loser have to say? – C_

_He said he's sorry he couldn't answer, he was busy with work, he'd call as soon as he got the chance, and he loved me – T_

_Barf! Yeah I've been MIA for 5 days and the best he could come up with is I was busy with work? He's a scumbag! You need to drop his ass! – C_

Trish frowned at her phone, reading her friend's last message. She knew it was time to change the subject.

_How's work going? – T_

_Pretty good. Things are going good with my hottie! – C_

_What's his name? You never told me – T_

_Randy – C_

_Ooohhhh Randy :-P – T_

_Wait until you see him, you'll understand! –C_

_Okay, I'll let you get back to work. See you at home. I have some phone calls to make for this case we're working on – T_

_Okay momma, see you at home – C_

* * *

Trish had been so busy with work she lost track of the time. Mr. Lynch came out of his office and looked at Trish. "You've been working so hard today, and we've made great progress on this case. Thank you for all your hard work. I really appreciate it, Trish."

She smiled at her boss. "Anytime Mr. Lynch."

"Jack. You know you can call me Jack."

"Sorry, Jack."

"I can't believe it's already four o'clock," he said, as he wiped the finger prints off of his glasses with his handkerchief.

"Oh wow! I've been so busy; I didn't even realize what time it was."

"Hey, why don't you head out early for today. You didn't even take a lunch today. I appreciate all your help."

"Thank you Mr… I mean, Jack," she corrected herself.

"We'll work on it," he said with a chuckle. "I will see you in the morning dear."

"See you in the morning."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Trish was home. She put her key in the door and pushed the door open. She kicked off her high heels in her normal spot, and tossed her keys on the table.

"You're home early."

"You sound upset by this," Trish answered with a chuckle.

"No, I'm always happy to see your face."

Trish smiled at her friend and walked over to the couch. She put her purse on the coffee table, sat down, and let out a loud sigh.

"Rough day?" Chrissy asked.

"Eh… Not really rough, just… Busy… Very busy."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, we're working on a new case and I had a ton of leg work to do today," Trish answered.

"I think you need a night out," Chrissy offered with a hopeful smile.

Trish scoffed. "Yeah right! I haven't even _seen_ Jason in days, let alone get him to go out anywhere with me."

"Who the hell said anything about Jason? I sure as shit didn't! I mean a night out with me!"

"You know what? That actually sounds like a great idea…" Trish agreed, nodding her head.

"Great! Let's make some plans for this weekend or something, but I gotta get goin, I have a meeting at work. Tracy is picking me up and taking me in; can you come pick me up at 8?"

"Sure, I'll pick you up."

"Cool. I'll see you later then," Chrissy called to Trish as she headed out the front door.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Thank's to TrishOrton for the review. I appreciate it. Here's the next chapter. Reviews are appreciated! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

After Chrissy left, Trish wandered into the kitchen and made herself a sandwich for dinner. When she was done eating she cleaned up the kitchen. After the kitchen was clean and her sandwich was eaten, she decided to watch a little TV. Trish made her way into the living room and sat down. She turned on the TV. The news was on so she decided to watch it.

After about an hour of watching TV she pulled out her phone and checked to see if Jason had called her. She hit the power button and her phone lit up_. I don't know why I even bothered_, she thought. _I actually have a boyfriend, and yet here I sit… Alone… As usual. _She clicked on Jason's name and a text bubble came up.

_Missing you. It feels like it's been forever since I got to see you. Call me on your break. Love you – T_

She sighed loudly and tossed her phone on the couch. It was now 7:30pm and she had to be at the gym to pick Chrissy up at 9:00pm. She decided she'd go take a shower to try and occupy her time. After her shower, she decided on a pair of purple cotton shorts and a white t-shirt. She pulled her long hair back into a ponytail. She slid on a pair of white flip-flops and glanced at the clock. 8:27 is read. _Eh, it'll take 15 minutes to get there, I'll just leave now._ She headed out into the living room, grabbed her phone and her keys. She clicked the power button on her phone to see if Jason had responded to her and just as she expected, nothing. She headed out the front door, locking it on her way out. She unlocked the door to her Charger, pulled it open, and slid in. She put her key in the ignition, started her car, and drove away.

* * *

There was next to no traffic, so Trish took the long way. She pulled into the parking lot of Gold's Gym and parked her car and glanced at the clock. It read 8:46pm. She decided it was close enough and got out. She locked her doors and headed inside. She pulled the door open to the gym and walked in. The night secretary, Katie, greeted her.

"Hey Trish! How are you?"

"Hey Katie. I'm good. How are you?"

"Good! I think the meeting is over. They're just milling around talking in there. You can go on in if you'd like," Katie said with a smile.

"Okay thanks."

Trish walked down the short hallway to the conference room. The door was open, so she walked in.

"Well hello there. Can I help you?" an unfamiliar face asked Trish.

"Oh, I'm just here to pick up Chrissy."

"Ah! You must be Trish," the stranger said as he extended his hand to Trish.

She smiled at him, placing her hand in his and shaking his hand. "Yes I am. You must be Randy?"

"I am," Randy answered simply with a grin.

"I see you two have met," Chrissy chimed in as she walked over to Randy and Trish.

"We did," Randy answered, nodding his head. Trish watched as Randy gave her a once over. "Yeah, he'll definitely like you."

Trish looked at Chrissy with a mixture of shock and confusion on her face. Just then Trish's phone rang. She looked at the screen and it read 'Jason.' She clicked on the green answer button.

"Hello?"

_Where the fuck are you?_ Jason snapped.

"I went to pick up Chrissy from work," Trish answered.

_How fuckin nice of you. I'm sitting outside your house because I wanted to be nice and let you see me but you're not even fuckin here! It's only supposed to be our date night!_ Jason shouted.

"Jay, I haven't heard a word from you since I called you this morning. You haven't called me all day until right now; I didn't know you were coming over. If I would have known, I would have been home. I can be home in 15 minutes," Trish offered.

_No fuck that! I'm supposed to be first! I'm not going to sit around and wait for you to decide you feel like coming home! You're probably out there fuckin cheating on me anyway!_

"That dude is a real douche. You should hang up on his ass. Don't let him talk to you like that," Randy said in disgust. He couldn't help but hear both sides ove the conversation since Jason was yelling so loudly at her.

_Who the fuck is that? You're with some fuckin guy, you bitch! I knew it! _Jason yelled angrily into the phone.

"No Jay. It's one of the trainers here. I swear. I'm just picking up Chrissy from work," Trish said, pleading her case to him as the tears welled up in her eyes.

"Gimme that phone! I'll teach his ass! You don't ever disrespect a woman like that! Tell his punk ass to come see me if he wants to get tough!" Randy shouted purposefully loud enough for the other man to hear.

_Fuck that dude and fuck you too! You're nothing but a cheating whore!_ And with that the phone went dead.

His words stung and the tears began to stream down Trish's face. Randy walked over to Trish and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry for getting involved but he's a douche. He shouldn't speak to you like that, especially if he's your boyfriend and he claims to love you. That's disrespectful, and I don't stand for that shit."

Chrissy walked over to her friend and wrapped her arms around her waist, and hugged her tightly. "I tell her that all the time. She deserves better than him," she said, looking at Randy.

"She's right you know?" Randy asked Trish.

Trish nodded. "I know," Trish whispered.

"Come on, let's get you home. I'll drive," Chrissy offered.

"I wish our first meeting was a better one. I hope you don't hold this against me?" Randy asked.

"No, not at all. Thank you for standing up for me."

"Anytime. Just remember, if you change your mind, I am more than ready, willing, and able to go find him and knock some sense into his ass for you," Randy offered with a cocky grin.

Trish smiled weakly. "Thanks."

* * *

Trish spent most of her Thursday trying to get in touch with Jason. She called and called him, she sent him text message after text message but she got no response from him. Finally Jason called her on Friday morning and she smoothed things over. She explained she was just picking Chrissy up and that she wasn't with anyone. She apologized to Jason for not being there when he got there and after a half an hour of being lectured about her not putting him first and a lot of groveling on her part, Jason seemed to let things go. He told her he wanted see her, so they made plans to go to dinner after work.

Trish kept herself busy with the work she was doing for the case. It was about 3:00pm and Mr. Lynch informed her they had pretty much all they needed for now and that he was going to submit their findings to the judge. With two more hours until she was done and nothing to do, it left too much time for her to think about everything. Half of her was excited to see Jason; the other half was dreading it. She never knew what Jason she was going to get. The happy, funny, loving Jason she fell in love with or the mean, controlling, nasty Jason she'd been seeing more and more of lately. It was too late now though, all she could do is hope for the best.

Trish walked into her apartment and was greeted by her best friends smiling face. "Hey you."

"Hey… So… Umm… Do you have plans for tonight?" Chrissy asked.

"Yeah, Jason is picking me up at 7:00 and we're going to dinner. Why?"

Chrissy's smile deflated. "Oh."

"Why?" Trish pressed.

"I'm going to Randy's place for a little get together he and his roommate are having. They're having some people over for a barbeque and he asked me to come. He told me to bring you with me. He said he wanted to in… Umm… I mean… He wanted to make up for the other day to you."

"I heard that! He wanted to in… What?" Trish asked with a smirk.

"Oh… Uhh… Nothing… So how was work? How's that case you're working on going?" Chrissy asked, blatantly attempting to change the subject.

"Back it up; you're not changing the subject that easy. What were you talking about?"

"We want to introduce you to his roommate… I kinda told him about you and Jason and how I hate him and how I know you deserve better… Annnddd… We kinda talked about introducing you to his roommate, who by the way is absolutely gorgeous and totally single!"

Trish rolled her eyes. "I _have_ a boyfriend; I don't know how many times I gotta tell you."

"And I don't know how many times I gotta tell you he's a loser, you need to drop his ass, and you deserve better," Chrissy shot back.

Trish shook her head. "I'm not having this conversation right now. I'm going to take a shower and get ready."

* * *

It was 6:45 and Trish was showered and ready to go. She knew Jason would throw a fit if she was late. She wore Jason's favorite yellow sundress and a pair of strappy, high heeled sandals. She twisted her hair up and secured it with a clip. Jason always hated when she left her hair down. He always told her it got all over everything and he couldn't stand it. She put on her full arsenal of makeup, beginning with foundation and ending with lipstick. Trish preferred not to wear all that makeup, but Jason always told her how ugly she was without it. She gave herself a once over, making sure nothing was out of place, then headed out to the living room to wait for Jason. Trish sat down on the couch and her stomach began to twist into nervous knots. She was nervous about which Jason was going to show up on her hoped he was in a good mood because she really didn't feel like listening to him yell at her all night. She began to wish she wasn't even going. A few minutes later she could hear Chrissy coming down the hall to the living room. Chrissy was in a pair of jean shorts and a red tank top. She had on a pair of flip flops and Trish felt a pang of jealousy. She looked as comfortable as can be. She wished Jason would let her be that comfortable.

"Ready to go?" Trish asked.

"Yep. Why are you still here?"

"Jason isn't coming until 7," Trish answered.

Chrissy frowned. "It's almost 7."

"But not 7 yet, so technically he's not late yet."

Chrissy frowned again. "I wish you were coming with me."

"Actually, I wish I was coming with you too."

* * *

7 o'clock passed, 8 o'clock passed, 9 o'clock passed, and so did 10 o'clock. And still no Jason; no call, no text, no nothing. Trish tried calling him numerous times only to get his voicemail message. She sent text after text, and got no response. At 10:30, Trish finally gave up. She turned off the TV, locked the front door and went to the bathroom. She washed off her makeup as silent tears fell down her cheeks. She turned off the light in the bathroom and walked the short distance down the hallway to her bedroom. She stripped off her dress and left it lying on the floor. She slipped into an oversized t-shirt, pulled the clip out of her hair, and climbed into bed. She turned on the TV and laid down to cry herself to sleep.

It was 3:30am and Trish phone went off. She rolled over groggily and picked it up.

"Hello?"

_Haayyy baaaaby_, Jason's voice came through the receiver.

"Jason, its 3:30, where…"

Jason cut her off. _Baby! I'm sooooo sorry! You'll never believe what happened,_ Jason slurred. _I was leaving work and my truck broke down. I just fixed it._

"You're drunk," Trish said softly. Now she understood why Jason never showed up. He found something better to do than seeing her.

_Noooo baby. I swear scouts honor I'm not drunk. I didn't even drink a sip. I'm horny for you. I'm on my way over and you're going to give me some sex, _he slurred.

"Don't bother Jason. I'm in bed."

_So what_, he snapped. His tone was becoming irritated.

"So? You were supposed to be here at 7! We were supposed to go to dinner, you remember that? Then you never showed up, nor did you even bother to call me and let me know. I sat home waiting for you all night, and for what? So you could go to the bar? And now you want me to jump because you want sex? Screw you Jason!" Trish listened to her voice bounce off her quiet bedroom walls. She was shocked at herself. That was the first time she had ever stood up to Jason, let alone yell at him.

_Whatever you dumb bitch. I'll just get it somewhere else. There are plenty of women in Florida that want a piece of this. _Trish could hear the surprise in Jason's voice.

_"_They can have you!" With that Trish hung up the phone on him. A few seconds later, Chrissy was standing in her doorway. "I'm so sorry, did I wake you up?"

"I heard you yelling, I just came to see if you were okay, then I kinda eavesdropped on your conversation. I'm proud of you," Chrissy answered with a grin. She walked in and sat down on Trish's bed with her.

Trish couldn't help the smile that spread across her lips. "That did feel really good."

The girls giggled. "Come on. I'm hungry, lets go make a snack."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks again to TrishOrton for the review. You're awesome! Here's the next chapter. Reviews are appreciated. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

It wasn't until 1 o'clock in the afternoon that Trish finally began to stir. She blinked the blurriness away and stretched. She sat up and swung her feet off the side of her bed. She got up and wandered into the living room to see if Chrissy was up. As she got closer to the living room, she could hear Chrissy talking on the phone.

"Yeah, she actually yelled at him… I know… I was surprised too… I'm proud of her too."

Trish walked into the living room and sat down next to Chrissy. "Who are you talking to?" Trish whispered.

"Randy," Chrissy whispered back. "I mean, I'll try Randy, but I'm not promising anything."

"What are you talking about?" Trish asked curiously.

"I'm talk…" Chrissy stopped and brought her attention back to the man on the phone. "Yes, that was Trish." Chrissy looked up at Trish, "Uh… Okay…" She extended her arm out with her phone in her hand. "Randy wants to talk to you."

"Uh… Hello?"

"Hey! So listen up, we're having people over again tonight for another cookout. Chrissy is coming and so are you," Randy told her in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone.

"Umm… Well… I…" Trish began searching for an excuse.

"You umm well nothin. You're coming and you're going to have a good time. Period. End of story."

"But I…"

Randy cut her off. "If you don't come, it'll hurt my feelings. I'm going to think you're avoiding me because of what happened at the gym, and I'm going to really think you hate me."

"I don't ha…"

Randy cut her off again. "Good. I'll see you tonight." And the line went dead.

Trish looked down at her friend's phone and then at her friend.

"So? What did he say?" Chrissy asked curiously.

"Basically he told me I'm going tonight, period… End of story."

"Yay! You're coming!" Chrissy squealed.

"Not like I really have a choice. He told me if I didn't come he was going to take it as I hated him," Trish answered with a scowl.

"Oh stop. You're going to have so much fun! I did! His friends are super nice and so is his roommate. And I don't know if I told you this before or not, but his roommate is super hot!"

Trish chuckled. "No, you didn't tell me that yet."

* * *

Randy told the girls to be there around 6, so the girls began to get ready at 4 o'clock to be ready by 5:30. Chrissy talked Trish into letting her pick out her outfit. She decided she wanted them to go in similar outfits. Chrissy picked out a pair of jean shorts for both of them that were short, but not indecent. She paired Trish's shorts with a short sleeved lavender fitted button down shirt. Chrissy's shit was the same except hers was pink. Chrissy told Trish they had a pool and to wear her bathing suit underneath. Chrissy had picked out Trish's white bikini for her to wear, and Chrissy picked a silver bikini for herself.

"Really? All of the bathing suits I have and you had to pick my white one? I only wear that one when I tan because it's so small," Trish asked Chrissy with a scowl.

"That bikini looks super hot on you. Shut up and out it on!"

Trish shook her head but did as she was told. After putting her bikini on, she slid into her shorts and then grabbed her shirt. She slid her arms in then buttoned the front up.

"Are you kidding me?" Chrissy exclaimed in a huff. She walked over to her friend and swatted her hands away from the buttons. "You're not a granny for the love of god!" she scolded her friend as she unbuttoned the top three buttons of Trish's shirt, revealing just enough of her ample cleavage but not too much. Chrissy followed suit and did the same with her shirt.

Trish decided to leave her hair down for now. She smiled to herself when she thought about what Jason's reaction would be to her hair being down. Chrissy opted to put her chocolate brown hair up into a ponytail. Trish went light on her makeup, only putting on some eyeliner and mascara. Chrissy did the same. Both girls decided on flip-flops, and with that they were ready to go. They grabbed their phones and purses, and then headed out the door. The girls hopped into Trish's car and began the short ride to Randy's house.

About 30 minutes later, Trish pulled up in front of the house Chrissy had pointed to. Trish parked the car and the girls got out. They walked up to the door and Chrissy rang the doorbell. After a few seconds, they heard noise coming from behind the door. The door swung open and there stood Randy. He was wearing a pair of swimming trunks and a white t-shirt.

"Hey! There you girls are!" he greeted them with a big smile. "Come on in." He stepped back and waved his arm, gesturing to the girls to come in. Chrissy walked in and Trish followed behind her. After the girls were in Randy shut the front door and followed them into the living room. Trish looked around and couldn't help but to be surprised with how clean the place was. Even with two men living there.

"I'm glad you came," Randy said as he walked over to Trish and pulled her in for a hug. "You don't hate me," he joked, giving her a squeeze.

Trish chuckled. "No I don't hate you."

Randy then turned his attention to Chrissy. "You look… Well… Let's just say I likey and I likey a lot." He pulled Chrissy in and gave her a hug. "You girls can make yourself at home. Inside, outside, whatever you want. I'm going to be heading out back myself. I'm gonna get started cooking."

"We'll go outside with you," Chrissy answered for both of them.

Trish followed Randy and Chrissy to the backyard. There was a large concrete patio with a roof over it right outside the sliding doors in the dining room of the house. They men had the patio decorated with a large grill and patio set with 6 chairs. Beyond the patio was a large in ground pool, complete with diving board and chairs for tanning. Trish sat down at the table on the patio and Chrissy sat down with her as well.

"So Randy, where's your roommate?" Chrissy asked.

"He just ran to the store to pick up a few things we needed. Our friend, Mike, is going to come over as well," Randy answered as he began scrubbing the grill with a wire brush to clean it. "Speak of the devil; I think he's here now. If you'll excuse me ladies, I'm gonna go let him in. I'll be right back."

Chrissy looked at Trish, "Let's go get some sun."

Trish followed Chrissy over to the pool. Chrissy grabbed a chair and pulled it close to the chair Trish was at. Trish went to sit down, but Chrissy stopped her. "You're not gonna get any sun with all those clothes on."

"Well… Uhh... Jason wouldn't…"

"Jason nothing! I don't even want to hear you talk about him today. I want you to relax and have a good time for a change!" Chrissy scolded.

Trish sighed and unbuttoned her shirt. She slid it off and hung it up on the back of her chair. She slid out of her shorts and dropped them on the end of her chair. She adjusted the back of her chair slightly for a more comfortable position, and then sat down. She looked over at Chrissy who had already stripped out of her clothes and was sitting on her chair, smearing suntan lotion on herself. Chrissy handed Trish the suntan lotion and Trish smeared some on herself as well.

A few seconds later, the patio door slid open and Randy stepped out followed by Mike. "Pretty girls in bikini's? Now that's awesome!" the new man bellowed.

"Could you at least pretend to know what it's like to be around pretty girls?" Randy scolded the younger man, shaking his head. He walked over to the girls with Mike in tow. "Mike this is Chrissy, Chrissy this is Mike."

"Hello," Chrissy greeted Mike.

Mike gave Chrissy a big smile. "Don't even think about it," Randy warned. "And this is her best friend, Trish. Trish, this is Mike."

"Hi."

Mike tried again with a big smile. "Nope," Randy told him, simply.

"Well damn, two beautiful women here and I can't talk to either of them" Mike complained.

"You can talk to them all you want, just none of your Rico Suave shit." The girls giggled at Randy's comments. "Come on, come help me cook," Randy told Mike.

The guys went over to the grill to finish cleaning it so the cooking could begin. The girls enjoyed conversation amongst themselves while the guys cooked. The girls were so involved in their conversation; they didn't notice the new man who came out to the patio.

"It's about time you finally got back. I thought you fuckin got lost!" Randy teased.

"Shut up Orton."

Randy chuckled. He watched his friend stared at the girls in their backyard, laying around the pool. "See something you like?"

He smiled. "Yeah, I do."

"I told you. I knew you'd like her," Randy told him.

He nodded. "You were right."

"Dude! You wouldn't let me talk to either of them… Well I get why with the brunette… But the blonde? I coulda tried my luck, but nooooo. You gotta save her for him," Mike pouted.

The man shook his head. "I'm going to go start putting the burgers together," he said, disappearing back into the house.

"Hey, it looks like they're cooking. Let's go see what's going on. I'm starving," Chrissy suggested.

"Okay." Trish got up and followed her friend back over to the patio with Randy and Mike. Chrissy went over to Randy, and Trish sat down at the table. She pulled her sunglasses off and put them on top of her head.

"Ready to eat?" Randy called to Trish.

"Yep. I'm starving."

Just then, the patio door slid open, and Trish let out a loud gasp. All of the attention turned to Trish.

"Are you okay?" Randy asked.

"What's wrong?" Chrissy asked, concerned.

Trish's eyes stayed fixed on the man, and his stayed fixed on her. His mouth hung open slightly from shock. "Tr… Trish?" He blinked his eyes hard, trying to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing.

"John," she whispered. A familiar pain hit Trish in the heart. Immediately, her mind was flooded with the memories of that day in the hallway of her high school when he told her he wanted to breakup after four years out of nowhere.

"One of you two want to tell me how in the hell you know each other?" Randy snapped.

Trish sat silent, her eyes still fixed on John.

"She… I… We…" John sputtered. "We… Dated in high school. She… She was my high school sweetheart. We were… We were high school sweethearts."

"Awkward," Mike said under his breath.

There was a long silence. Shock riddled everyone's face. "So… Food's ready… Let's eat," Randy announced, finally in an attempt to break up the awkwardness.

Randy walked over to the table and placed the plate of hamburgers and hotdogs he had just grilled on the table. Chrissy followed him to the table, and walked around it to sit next to Trish. Randy pulled out the seat he was standing behind and sat down which was across from Chrissy. Mike was already seated at the head of the table, and John took the open seat next to Randy which was across from Trish. Dinner was dampened by an awkward silence. Conversation was very sparse. After eating, Trish decided she was going to go sit by the pool and stick her legs in.

"If you boys will excuse me, I'm gonna go freshen up," Chrissy excused herself from the table.

After Chrissy disappeared in the house, Randy turned to John. John's eyes were fixed on Trish sitting by the pool. He was in his own little world. "You okay man?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. It's just… I dunno… It's been six years since the last time I saw her… Since I've spoken to her… And after all this time, I run into her again, completely by chance… It's crazy…"

"Was she this much of a hottie when you dated her, Cena?" Mike asked with a grin.

John shot him a look. "Don't even _think_ about it Mizanin."

"You _already_ dated her, you're not dating her _now, _which technically makes her fair game," Mike joked.

John's jaw tightened in agitation. "I _will_ break your face."

"Relax Cena, I'm joking," Mike reassured with a chuckle. "Unless she goes for me… Then game on." With that Mike sprung up from his seat and ran into the house, ducking behind the sliding patio door for safety. The can John threw at him bounced off the side of the house.

John turned his attention back to Trish. He sat at the table in silence watching her swing her legs back and forth in the pool. "Dude, why don't you just go talk to her?" Randy asked.

"I don't really think she _wants_ to talk to me," John answered, still watching her.

"Why not?"

"Because of what happened between us. I broke her heart and at the worst possible time, while her parents were going through a bad divorce… And after four years together, I gave her the lame excuse that I didn't want to be tied down with a girlfriend in college…" John trailed off. "I can still see her face that day in the hallway when I told her." John winced mentally at the memory.

"That was years ago John."

"I know…" John trailed off.

"So go talk to her," Randy encouraged.

John nodded. "Yeah… You're right. I'm gonna go talk to her." John got up from the table and headed towards her slowly. His stomach twisted into nervous knots. _There's nothing to be nervous about Cena. Relax. It's just Trish. You've known her forever, he thought to himself_, trying to calm his nerves. _Well here goes nothing…_


	4. Chapter 4

******AN: Thanks to MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton for the reviews. You guys awesome! Here's the next chapter. Reviews are appreciated. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"Hey, mind if I sit down?"

Trish squinted from the sunshine when she looked up at him. "Uhh… Sure."

John kicked off his sneakers and peeled his socks off. He stepped onto the ledge of the pool and sat down next to her, dipping his legs into the water. "Water feels nice."

"Yeah it is. Not too cold but not too warm."

"So… How've you been?" John asked, looking down at his feet in the water."

"Umm… I've been… Good. How about you?"

"Eh, can't complain I guess." John turned his head to look at her. "So, fill me in on your life. What's been going on? How'd you end up in Tampa?"

Trish hesitated for a minute, thinking about where to start. "Well… Mom and dad divorced," she began.

"Yeah… I remember that…" he said, trailing off.

"Dad took a new position in New York when the divorce started, two weeks later mom had a new boyfriend… Mom got so wrapped up in him, I didn't exist. I was like their unwanted roommate. Mom wanted Dad to take me to New York with him, she said there was no point in her keeping me because I was too old for her to collect child support from him and if she tried, and by the time she got it started I would already be out of school. Dad told her no because he said it was too close to the end of the year. He said he didn't wanna uproot me that late in the year and he wanted me to graduate with my friends. He said he didn't wanna take me away from my friends, he didn't wanna take me away from you…"

"Oh…" he said quietly.

Trish paused for a minute; she waited for the twinge of pain in her heart to subside. "Then we broke up… And… Well I decided I wanted out of West Newbury. I didn't feel like there was anything left home for me and decided I wanted a fresh start where I didn't know anyone and no one knew me. I wanted somewhere warm and I decided on Florida. I applied for colleges, got accepted to Stetson, told dad and he was thrilled. I packed up and was gone. Dad flew to Florida, met me there and got me settled in. I planned on getting myself a job to put myself through college, but dad wouldn't allow me to try to pay for college myself,so I took a job at a restaurant down the street from Stetson to have money for myself."

John nodded, listening intently.

"Chrissy was my roommate during our freshman year. We quickly became best friends. We've been basically inseparable ever since. We roomed together our sophomore year, and half way through our junior year we decided to get an apartment off campus together. When it came time to intern, I found my boss, Mr. Lynch. He agreed to take me on for my internship. A few years later, I was ready to graduate, and Mr. Lynch told me he had a graduation present for me and surprised me with an offer to take me on as a paralegal permanently. And that's pretty much it."

John smiled. "You were always such a smart girl. I always knew you'd do great things."

Trish smiled back. "So what about you?"

"I stayed and went to Springfield. I ended up with a degree in exercise physiology. Took a couple of here and there jobs. I ended up meeting Randy from going to the gym he was working at in West Newbury for awhile. We became good friends after that. We had an apartment back home. Then he ended up getting the offer for a transfer to Tampa. He told me his uncle had a house down there that he'd let us rent if I wanted to go with him. I was feeling like my life was in a rut and just got tired of the scenery and decided to pack up and move to beautiful, sunny, Tampa. I landed a job working for a physical therapy doctor that I love, and bam. Here we are today," he told her, giving her the knee weakening smile she used to love so much.

Trish diverted her eyes from his and stared at her feet in the pool. "Very cool. I'm happy for you," she told him with a weak smile.

"It's good to see you again," he said softly.

"Yeah… It is," she answered, unconvincingly.

"You don't seem as happy to see me though," he pressed.

She turned her head to look at him. "I just never thought that after all this time, I'd run into again. Especially somewhere so far away from home."

He shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you're right." There was a brief silence between them. "Go to dinner with me?" he blurted out. Trish didn't know what to say. She blinked at him, not saying a word. "Please?"

"I… Uhh…"

"It's me. Please?" he pleaded.

"I… I… Can't," she sputtered, tripping over her words.

He reached over and took a hold of her hand. She felt a shock of electricity course through her body from his touch. She went to pull her hand away and he held on tighter. "Why not? It's just me."

"Because… Jason…"

"Who's Jason?" John asked, confused.

"He's my… Boyfriend…"

"Oh… You have a boyfriend? That's cool…" John trailed off. "We've know each other for how long? We can go as… Friends."

"Jason woul…"

"What did I tell you about that name?" Chrissy scolded as she walked up behind them.

Trish turned her head to see Chrissy. "We were just…"

Chrissy cut her off. "You were just saying that name that I warned you not to talk about. I was serious when I told you I didn't want to hear it again." Chrissy quickly scooted her foot under Trish's butt and gave her a hard shove into the pool.

Trish flailed in the pool for a few seconds, but quickly regained her bearings and resurfaced. She shot Chrissy a glare as she treaded water. John had a smirk on his face; he was visibly trying not to laugh out loud. Chrissy had no shame about it and was laughing blatantly at her friend. "Oh you think that's funny?"

"Yes, yes I do," Chrissy answered, still laughing at her friend. Just then Randy ran up behind Chrissy, scooping her up into his arms and tossed her into the pool with Trish.

Trish waited for her friend to resurface, "Not so funny is it now, bitch?" Trish teased, splashing water at her friend. John could no longer contain his laughter. The sound of John laughing caught Trish's attention. "What's so funny, Cena?"

"You never even saw her coming," he answered with a chuckle.

Trish slowly swam in closer to John. John watched intrigued by what she was going to do next. He knew from experience, she was up to something. "Was that funny John?" she asked him with the most seductive face she could.

"Uhh… Well…" he stuttered, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Just then four hands wrapped around John's arms tightly pulling him to his feet. He struggled for a few futile seconds, trying to ward off Randy and Mike, but it was of no use. The momentary distraction provided by Trish was just enough to throw him off. Trish quickly swam out of the way as Mike and Randy finally got the better of John and tossed him in the pool still wearing his shirt.

John flailed for a few seconds just like Trish and Chrissy did before he resurfaced. "Funny assholes, real funny." John swam towards the lower end of the pool so he could stand. He pulled his shirt off and threw it out of the pool and on to one of the chairs.

Trish couldn't take her eyes off of him. _Wow… He looks… Damn he's even more sexy now then he was back in high school_, she thought to herself.

"Psssttt," Chrissy called to Trish, trying to get her attention without drawing the guy's attention. Trish turned her attention to her friend. "Wipe your mouth, you're drooling sweetie!" she mouthed.

Trish responded by giving Chrissy the finger and stuck her tongue out at her.

"That's not very nice," John chided as he came up next to her in the pool. "You can't be mad at Chrissy for pushing you in. That was funny as hell."

Trish turned to face John. "That wasn't funny, but you know what was?"

"What?"

"Watching Randy and Mike forcefully chuck you in the pool."

"You gotta admit, you getting sent into the pull off the end of Chrissy's foot was pretty funny too," John told her with a grin.

"Not as funny as it was when it was you," Trish teased before shoving him back under the water. John took advantage of the opportunity and wrapped his arms around Trish, pulling her under with him.

"Not so fun teasing me, now is it?" John teased back when they resurfaced.

* * *

The rest of the night went well. Conversation flowed freely between all of them The awkwardness that put a damper on the night earlier had faded. Trish had a great time for the first time in a long time. Jason hadn't called nor texted her at all the entire day. Jason hadn't even crossed her mind the entire night. She enjoyed being around Mike and Randy. Mike was a riot and listening to Randy's smart ass pick on him all night was hysterical. She could see the sparks between Chrissy and Randy and she couldn't be any happier for her best friend.

After the sun went down and the water in the pool cooled, everyone abandoned the pool and opted to sit around the table talking. The conversation lasted deep into the night. Around 1:30, the girls decided it was time to head home. Randy and John followed the girls to the front door to see them off. Trish walked down to her car and unlocked the doors. John followed her to the car. She reached for the door handle, and his hand covered hers, stopping her from opening the door. He slid between her and the car and leaned back on the car.

"What are you doing?" she asked with a chuckle.

He gave her that knee weakening smile she used to love so much. "So do you think I could get your number?"

"How do you know you don't still have my number?"

He looked down at the ground. "Because I've called it. Many times…" he answered softly.

Trish was shocked by his answer. She wasn't sure what to say. "You did?"

"Yes," he whispered.

"Why?"

"I missed you," he answered, looking her in the eyes.

She could see the honesty on his face and the sincerity in his eyes. "Yes, you can have my number."

John wasted no time and pulled out his phone and hit the button, lighting up the screen. He looked up at her, waiting for the number. She reached up to take his phone out of his hand, but quickly put her arm down. "I'm sorry… I…"

"What?" John asked confused.

"I should know better. Touching things that do not belong to me is unacceptable. Your phone is your phone, it's not for my eyes to see."

"It's just a phone, it's not a big deal," he told her, still confused. "Why does it sound like you just repeated that sentence to me verbatim from somewhere?"

She looked down at the ground, embarrassed. "I may have heard it once or twice in my life…"

He took her hand in his then placed his phone in her hand. "It's a phone, no big deal."

Trish dialed her number on his phone, waited to hear her phone ring, and then hung up. "There. Now we have each other's numbers," she said, giving him a smile.

He took his phone back, and grinned at her. "Thanks."

Randy and Chrissy came down to the car. John stood up and pulled open the car door for Trish. Randy did the same for Chrissy. "Drive safe. Let me know you got home okay," John instructed.

Trish shook her head and chuckled. "You would think you were my boyfriend." Immediately, she realized what she said and got quiet.

Randy gave Chrissy a peck on the cheek and closed her door. "See you soon gorgeous."

Chrissy smiled in return. "I can't wait,"

John gave Trish a half-smile and shut her door. She put her key in the ignition and turned her car on. The girls waved to the guys before Trish pulled off. John watched as they disappeared down the street. "I wish," he whispered into the dark. "I wish…"


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Sorry for the delay in getting out the next chapter. I had a stomach virus for the last three days which really sucked. I'm still not feeling too great but I still wanted to try and get another chapter up. Anyways, here it is. Reviews are appreciated as always! And thank you to MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton. You guys rock! Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

"You okay man?" Randy asked John as he walked into the living room from the kitchen.

"Yeah. I'm okay."

"You sure?" Randy pressed.

"I'm sure. Why?"

"You just haven't been yourself this whole week. I know something is up. I know you better than that…" Randy said looking at John skeptically.

"Just have a lot on my mind I guess," was all John could come up with.

"Like what?"

"It doesn't matter," John answered as he tried to dismiss the conversation.

"I'm your friend, so it matters to me."

John sighed. He knew he wasn't going to get out of the conversation. "It's just… Trish…" John blurted out.

"What about her?"

"After all this time… I run into her again… And by complete chance… Then being around her again… Seeing her again… I just…" John trailed off.

"You just what?" Randy pressed.

"I never expected to feel the way I did when I saw her."

"So what you're saying is you're not over her?" Randy questioned.

John hesitated, carefully thinking about his answer. "When I decided to breakup with her, I thought that's what I wanted. I got caught up in that guy talk about how epic the college parties were going to be and how I couldn't let a girlfriend get in the way of that. I was fine for awhile after the breakup. I spent the summer with my boys preparing for what was going to be an awesome college experience. I kept myself so busy I didn't really think about it. I didn't let myself _have_ time to think about it. Then college started, my activities slowed down and with the free time I began to have I found myself beginning to miss her. I tried my damnedest to fight it, but I couldn't. I finally broke down and called her. That's when I found out her cell phone number was disconnected. I tried to leave it alone after that, but I couldn't. I got desperate and I went to her mom's house to see if she was still living there. Her mother told me she didn't live there anymore and slammed the door in my face. I even resorted to emailing her, only to find the email address I had for her was deactivated."

"I see," Randy said, nodding his head as he listened.

"It hurt but I had no one to blame but myself. I was the one who wanted it. Most of her friends wouldn't talk to me anymore and the ones that would didn't know where she'd moved to. Most of them said they hadn't talked to her since graduation. So after awhile, it got easier because I couldn't see her… I couldn't talk to her… I guess I just pushed it to the back of my mind," John trailed off.

"So you basically never really got over her. You figured out not being with her wasn't what you really wanted, so you tried to get her back but couldn't because you couldn't find her. In essence you never got over her per se, you just learned to deal with not having her in your life which was easy because she wasn't around but now she is and you just figured out you can't really deal with it?"

"What are you, some kind of philosopher now or something?" John scoffed shaking his head.

"Don't hate because I'm right," Randy retorted.

"I don't think I'd say I'm not over it, because I am. I've dated people since her and I've gotten along just fine without her. I just... I dunno... Reminiscing. Seeing her, talking to her, just made me remember the old times we had. The good times. I just have to adjust to her being in my life again and being her... Friend."

"So you're okay with being just... friends?" Randy asked skeptically.

"Yes... But it doesn't matter anyway because there's really no choice. She has a boyfriend. I'm sure all this came on because it's the first time I've seen her in years. She was a big part of my life for the better part of four years, so it makes sense there would still be something there. I'm sure it'll go away and everything will be fine again. I care about her still obviously... As a friend."

Randy laughed loudly. "A boyfriend?" Randy shook his head. "And are you trying to convince me you care about her as just a friend or are you trying to convince you? Are you sure it'll go away?"

"I'm not trying to convince anyone. We're friends and I'm perfectly okay with that," John answered. "And… Yeah… It'll go away."

"So if I invite Chrissy over say tomorrow, and I tell her to bring Trish and Jason along, you're going to be okay with seeing her with that douche?"

"Of course I would. He's her boyfriend, I'm fine with that. We are friends," John answered.

"That douchebag is barely a boyfriend. He treats her like shit, he only sees her when it's convenient for him, he regularly makes plans to go out with her and doesn't show up, he regularly cheats on her, he tells her she's not allowed to wear her hair down because it's gross, she has to wear a full face of makeup at all times around him because she's 'ugly without it,' he tells her she's fat, she's lucky to have him because there's no on else who would ever want her or to be seen with her. Some boyfriend…"

John felt a wave of anger flow throw his body. "She's beautiful and she always was! Beautiful inside and out! And there's tons of men in the would who would want her, to be seen with her, I know because I'm one of them!" John blurted out. A cocky smile spread across Randy's face. "Shut it Orton, I meant I was one of them."

"Yeah… Sure that's what you meant." Randy winked at John and gave him a thumbs up. "But he's too stupid to see that. Chrissy tells her all the time she deserves better than him, that she doesn't deserve to be treated the way he treats her, that she'd too good for him… But for some reason, she stays with him. Baffles the shit out of me…"

"What a jerkoff. He's got an amazing girl and he treats her like that? She deserves much better than that," John said shaking his head.

"Personally I think she needs someone to remind her how amazing she is, and that she shouldn't settle for some peckerhead like him."

"Yeah she does," John agreed.

Randy smiled a sly smile. "So what are you waiting for? Remind her."

"Wait what? Me?"

"Yes you," Randy answered simply. "Have you talked to her since last week when she was here?"

"No."

"Why not? You have her number," Randy reminded him.

"I know, but she didn't call me either so..."

"What are you like five?" Randy shook his head. "I didn't call her because she didn't call me…" he mocked. "Get the hell out of here what that lame ass excuse. "

"It's no…" John began.

Randy put his hand up in the air to stop John. "Grow a damn set and call her."

"Fuck you dude."

"Pussy." John shot Randy a look. "It's okay. I get it… You're too scared."

"I'm not scared." John glared at Randy.

"Then do it."

"I'll call her. I'm not scared."

"Yes you are, you won't call her," Randy goaded.

"I will." John picked up his phone off the coffee table in front of him. He tapped the power button and his screen lit up. He clicked on his contacts icon and scrolled through his contacts until he reached her name. The clicked on her name and a text bubble came up. He stared at his phone for a few seconds, unsure of what he wanted to say. He felt the nervous knots begin to twist in his stomach.

_Hey. I haven't heard from ya since last week. I just wanted to say hi and see about that dinner? – J_

"There, I did it." John turned his phone so Randy could see it.

"I was right," Randy said simply.

"How the hell were you right? I just showed you my phone!"

"I said you were too scared to _call_ her. You _texted_ her... So _technically_... I'm still right," Randy told him with a grin.

John rolled his eyes and shook his head as he tossed his phone back on to the coffee table. "You're such a dick."

Randy chuckled. "I know."

John scooted back on the couch and rested his head against the back. He turned his attention back to the TV. He couldn't stop himself from glancing back down at his phone. _It's not like she's going to answer me anyway. I'm sure she's got plenty of better things to do than drop everything to answer my texts_, he thought to himself. About fifteen minutes had passed and John and Randy were both engrossed in the program on the TV. Just then John's phone went off signaling he had received a text message. _Orrrr maybe she will answer..._


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I apologize for the delay in getting out this next chapter again. I've been playing catch-up since I was sick. Thanks again to MyTimeIsNow and TheRealChamps! You guys are awesome! As always, reviews are appreciated! Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Trish was patiently waiting for her work day to be over. It was Friday and although she didn't have any plans, she was ready to get out of work. It had been painfully slow the entire week. Mr. Lynch had been in court all week and Trish really didn't have too much to do. She tried to call Jason when she got up on Saturday morning, but he didn't answer. She called again Sunday, Monday, then again Tuesday but there was still no answer or return call. Trish gave up after that. Not talking to him and him not answering or returning her calls was beginning to not even bother her anymore. She was used to it.

She began shutting things down to leave when she heard her phone vibrate on her desk. She pulled her purse out of her bottom drawer and placed it on her desk then shut the drawer and locked her desk. She picked up her phone and hit the power button. She clicked on the text envelope and the message popped up.

_Hey. I haven't heard from ya since last week. I just wanted to say hi and see about that dinner? – J_

Trish's stomach flooded with butterflies when she read his message.

_Hey! You were serious about this dinner, huh? :-P – T_

_Yes I am. I know you have a boyfriend and like I said, as friends. I promise I'll be on my best behavior :) – J_

_Okay… As friends. When do you want to go? – T_

_Tonight? I know its short notice so if you already have plans, I understand – J_

_Actually I don't have plans – T_

_So tonight? – J_

Trish began to worry about going to dinner with John. "What if Jason finds out? He'll flip his lid for sure." She stopped to think about what to say. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. "No, you know what… I haven't heard from Jason since last week and I've called and called him and he hasn't bothered to even answer me. Screw him! John and I are friends and there's nothing wrong with two friends going to dinner together!" she said out loud to herself.

_Tonight sounds good – T_

_Great! I'll pick you up at 7:00? – J_

_Okay, I'll see you then – T_

* * *

John blinked hard at his phone. If it weren't for the verbal abuse he knew he'd get from Randy, he'd ask him to pinch him to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"What are your plans for this evening?" Randy asked as he walked down the stairs.

"I'm going to dinner with Trish."

Randy spit out the mouthful of water he had just sipped from his water bottle. "You're what?"

"… Going to dinner with Trish. I'm picking her up at 7," John answered with a cocky smile.

Randy grinned. "Nice."

"How about you?"

"I'm taking Chrissy out for dinner and a movie."

"Nice," John answered simply.

Randy continued on his way into the kitchen. When he was out of John's view he pulled his phone out of his pocket and began texting with a grin still on his face.

_I've got some gossip – R_

_What's that? –C_

_John and Trish are going to dinner tonight – R_

_WHAT? – C_

_You didn't know? – R_

_No. Trish isn't home from work yet. I haven't talked to her since lunch – C_

_Then shhh. Don't tell her I told you. He's picking her up at 7 – R_

_Ahhh! I'm so happy! – C_

* * *

Trish put her key in the door, unlocked it, and pushed it open. She walked in, kicked off her high heals, and walked into the living room. Chrissy was sitting on the couch.

"Hey," Chrissy greeted her with a big smile.

"Hey."

"How was your day?" Chrissy asked?

"It was okay. I was the only one in the office, so it was kinda boring."

"Oh that stinks… Sooo… What are your plans for tonight?" Chrissy asked with a grin.

Trish smiled and shook her head. "Judging from the look on your face, I think you already know what my plans are."

Chrissy gave Trish a sheepish smile. "A little birdie told me."

Trish chuckled. "Oh did he?"

"Yeah! I'm soooooooo happy!" Chrissy gushed.

"Cool your jets. We're friends and we're going as friends," Trish reminded her over enthusiastic friend.

"Yeah yeah… I know."

Trish started down the hallway towards her bedroom. "I'm going to get ready."

After Trish showered, she began rummaging around her room in an attempt to find something suitable to wear. Twenty minutes and a destroyed room later, and she still couldn't find anything she deemed suitable to wear. She flopped down on her bed and sighed. Chrissy was walking down the hallway and as she passed by her friend's room she couldn't help but to take notice of the exasperated look on Trish's face.

"You okay?" she asked with a chuckle.

Trish rolled her eyes. "No."

"What's wrong?"

"I can't find anything to wear," Trish answered.

"Want some help?" Chrissy offered.

"Please?"

"Sure." Chrissy walked over to the heap on clothes on Trish's floor and began to sift through them.

"I was just going to wear my yellow sundress, but I decided not to because that's what Jason makes me wear all the time."

Chrissy frowned at her friend. "No, you will not be wearing anything Jason said you had to wear." Chrissy stood up and walked over to Trish's closet. She pulled the door open and began sifting through the continence of the closet. After a few minutes Chrissy pulled out a soft blue dress with thin straps. It fit snug to Trish's ample cleavage, but the bottom flowed freely and stopped mid-thigh. Chrissy turned around and presented the dress to her friend with a big smile.

Trish scrunched up her face. "Don't you think that's a bit much?"

"No I don't. It's a cute, casual, dress. It's perfect. You can pair it with those cute wedge sandals you have over there," Chrissy said as she pointed to a pair of sandals on the floor.

Trish eyed the outfit. "Eh… I dunno."

"Put it on," Chrissy ordered. "And hurry it up because you're running out of time, John will be here soon."

Trish did as she was told and slipped into the dress. Chrissy zippered up the back then Trish slid into her sandals. She decided to leave her hair down but pulled half of her hair back away from her face and secured it with a barrette. She swept a light gray eye shadow over her lids, and then traced the top and bottom of her eyes with black eyeliner, finishing off her look with black mascara. She swept a pale, shimmery, pink gloss over her full lips. She took a step back and took a look at her reflection.

"I should change, shouldn't I? Makeup. I should put more on to cover my face better and make me look presentable. And my hair… I should put it all up…" Trish began bombarding her friend with questions. She quickly grabbed her brush and began brushing her hair up. She twisted her hair up then grabbed a clip and secured her hair up with the clip.

Chrissy walked over to Trish and grabbed her by her shoulders. "No you do not need to change or put on more makeup to make yourself look presentable. You're beautiful and if I ever hear you say something like that again, I'll smack the shit outta ya!"

Trish nodded in response to her friend. "Besides, you don't have time. John's here. I just heard a knock at the door. Take a minute, collect your thoughts, and calm yourself down. I'll go answer the door and let him know you'll be ready in a minute."

Trish nodded again in response to Chrissy's words. Chrissy gave her a reassuring smile and disappeared out the door of her room. Trish looked at her refection in the mirror again as she took a deep breath in and she exhaled it slowly. Her stomach flooded with butterflies. _I'm so nervous; I don't know why I'm so nervous… It's just John. We've known each other forever. We're friends… Friends go to dinner with each other even when the one friend has a boyfriend,_ she thought to herself.

"Trish, John is here," Chrissy called down the hallway.

"Be right there," Trish called back. She took one more deep breath and exhaled slowly. She flipped the light switch off as she walked out of her room.

She walked slowly down the hallway towards the living room. Turned into the living room and that's when she saw him. The sight of him nearly took her breath away. He was wearing a pair of jeans, a white polo shirt, and white sneakers. The shirt clung to his muscled chest, and the sleeves fit snuggly to his large biceps. John noticed Chrissy's eyes look behind him, and he turned around to see what she was looking at. When John turned around, his eyes met hers. He was silent and his mouth hung open slightly. He quickly regained his composure and his face lit up with the knee weakening smile she loved so much.

"Hey," he greeted her softly.

"Hey." She returned his greeting with a smile.

"You look… Amazing."

"And you look nice as well," she said, returning his compliment.

He closed the distance between them quickly and slid his arms around her waist. He pulled her into him, giving her a tight hug. "Mmm… You smell good too." He gave her a lopsided grin and slowly loosened his grip on her. "You ready to go?"

"Sure, let's go."

John gestured for Trish to lead the way. She walked to the front door with John closely behind. "Have a good time you guys," Chrissy called to them as she shut the door.

Trish shook her head. "She's a mess," she said with a chuckle.

John led Trish to his Mustang. He walked up to the passenger side door and pulled it open for her. He held his hand out to help her in. Trish felt the same shock of electricity course through her that she'd felt the day at the pool when she placed her hand in his. When she was seated in the car, John shut the door and went around to the driver's side and climbed in.

"Ready?" he asked as he put his seatbelt on. She nodded her head, and he pulled off.

As they were driving, he couldn't help but to seal glances at her when he could. After the third time, John finally spoke up. "You know, you really do look amazing… And I mean that."

She smiled slightly. "Thanks I guess."

"You guess?" John asked with a chuckle.

"I look okay, I guess. I probably should have put more makeup on. At least then I'd look almost presentable."

John looked at her stunned. "What?"

"I should have worn more makeup. Jason always tells me he won't be seen anywhere in public with me unless I'm wearing a full face of makeup. He says that's the only way I almost look presentable."

"Please tell me you're fucking joking?" John could hide the anger that swept across his face.

"No. Why?" she asked, confused by his reaction.

John exhaled slowly to calm himself before he spoke. "He really talks to you like that?" Trish turned her head away from John. She gazed out the window but didn't answer. "Trish, look at me." She turned her head back to look at him. "You're drop dead gorgeous. You don't need any special clothes or makeup. Just you. I _always_ told you that then and I still mean it now. You're just as beautiful now; maybe even more if that's even possible, as you were in high school and he's a complete moron if the can't see that."

"Thanks," she answered softly.

John pulled up to a red light and stopped, waiting for it to turn green. He took it as another opportunity to look at her beauty. "He's an ass if he treats you like that Trish. I think I agree with Chrissy and Randy, you do deserve better than that, much better."

"Everyone keeps saying that…"

"Ever heard the saying 'if you're told something more than once it must be true'? Maybe Chrissy's your best friend. She wouldn't just want you to breakup with your boyfriend unless she had a good reason, right?" Trish nodded. "All she wants is for you to be happy. You deserve to be happy."

"Well, Jason used to make me happy," Trish answered in a lame attempt to defend her relationship with Jason.

"Did you hear what you just said? You said he _used_ to, no that he _does_."

Trish frowned. "Are we really going to talk about Jason all night? Because if that was your plan, I really don't like your plan."

John chuckled. "Fine, I'll drop it. We're almost at the restaurant anyway." John pulled into the parking lot of T.G.I. Friday's. He quickly found a parking spot and parked the car. He turned off the car and turned to look at her. "Let's go eat. I'm starving," he told her with a grin.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: I've been really slacking on the updates. Sorry for that. I hope everyone had a good weekend! Thanks as always to MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are awesome! As always, reviews are appreciated! Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 7**

Dinner between Trish and John went well. John made an extra effort not to bring up Jason again. They mostly made small talk. John and Trish were always able to have a conversation about nothing, so making small talk was effortless. After they ate, John paid the bill, even though Trish argued with him about wanting to split the bill with him. John would have none of that. He promised he would let her split the bill with him, but he sneakily waited until she excused herself from the table to go to the bathroom and paid the bill in full himself.

"You're an ass Cena! I can't believe you waited for me to go to the ladies room and paid the bill," she told him with a chuckle as they walked back to his car.

"Eh, that's not the first time I've heard that," he answered as a grin spread across his lips.

"Ever heard the saying if you've been told something more than once…?" she teased.

He grinned and rushed at her. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and pinned her against his car. He wiggled his fingers against her sides causing her to laugh loudly. "Got jokes, do ya? Well who's laughin now?"

"John… Please… Stop… Don't… I hate… Being… Tickled…" she stammered out between laughs. She grabbed on to his arms and tried to pry his tickling fingers away from her sides but it was of no use. He was much too strong for her and he just tickled her more in response.

"I know you hate it," he answered with a devilish grin. He stopped tickling her but didn't take his hands off her sides. He stood in front of her just looking at her for a minute as she straightened herself up.

"What?" she asked.

He took one hand and reached up into her hair and pulled the clip that secured her hair up out, letting her long blonde hair fall down around her face and shoulders then placed his hand back on her side. "You should leave your hair down more often. I like your hair down."

Her heartbeat began to race with his closeness. His icy blue eyes bore into hers. Her sides felt like they were on fire from his touch. He was so close to her that she could smell his cologne. She felt dizzy… Intoxicated by his scent. Her mind was so clouded, she couldn't think coherently. All she could do was gaze back into his eyes and smile softly at his him. Before she knew it John had closed the distance between them and covered her lips with his. She was shocked at first but her body took over and she involuntarily slid her hands up his muscled arms until her arms were wrapped tightly around his neck. She couldn't stop herself from allowing her lips to part and allowing him to slide his tongue into her mouth, exploring her depths, twisting with her tongue, tasting her.

Suddenly Trish became all too aware of what was happening and pushed him away. "I'm… I'm… Sorry…"

John took a step back from her and blinked hard at her. "No, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me… I shouldn't have..."

"I… I think I should get home." She turned and pulled the door of the car open and slid into the passenger seat, closing the door behind her when she was seated.

John sighed loudly. "Smooth Cena… Real smooth. Ya tell her let's go out as friends and ya kiss her damn it…" he said to himself, shaking his head in disappointment.

The car ride back to Trish's was silent. He apologized twice more to her for the kiss, but she still didn't say anything. She just shook her head in response. When John pulled up out front of her apartment, Trish quickly thanked him for the night and dinner and got out of his car. She hurried inside. John didn't bother to push his luck and go after her. After she closed the door and when he knew she was in safely, John sped off.

John pulled up out front of the house he shared with Randy. He turned his car off but didn't get out. He kept mentally replaying the end of his night with Trish over and over again. "God… I'm such a fuckin idiot! I can't believe I fuckin kissed her! I tell her yeah, we'll go out as friends… Friends! And I fuckin kissed her!" John yelled at himself then punched his steering wheel. John finally climbed out of his car and slammed the door shut. He walked around to the back of the house and opened the gate to the backyard. He walked through the gate and over to the pool. He kicked off his shoes, pulled his socks off, and then peeled his shirt off. He slipped into the pool and hoped the water would calm him down.

John had lost track of the time. He pulled an inflatable raft into the pool and laid back staring at the stars. He didn't hear the patio door slide open, nor did he hear Randy walk over to the edge of the pool.

"You're home early."

John turned his attention away from the sky and looked over towards Randy. "You, what's up? I didn't even hear you."

"How did your night go?"

John rolled his eyes and shook his head. He slid down off the raft and swam to the ladder. He pulled himself out of the water and up the ladder. He followed Randy over to the patio table and sat down. "I fucked up."

"What do you mean you fucked up?"

"I mean I fucked up," John reiterated.

"What did you do?" Randy pressed.

"Everything was going great. We were laughing and having a good time. We were having good conversation. And then… I kissed her…"

Randy spit out the mouthful of beer he'd just taken from the surprise. "You kissed her?"

John nodded. "Yeah, I kissed her."

"What happened? What did she do? What kind of kiss? Come on! Details, details! Don't give me some half assed story!"

"Does it really matter? I fucked up," John snapped.

"Yes it matters!" Randy snapped back.

"I don't remember… It happened so fast…"

"Well _think_!"

John stopped and thought about it. "We were walking out of the restaurant and she was complaining because I paid for dinner and she wanted to split it with me. Then she said something picking on me, and I remember going after her and I trapped her up against my car and I tickled her. I remembered her putting her hands on my arms, trying to push me off but she couldn't. Then I remember looking at her and I took her clip out of her hair and I told her she should leave her hair down because she looks pretty with her hair down. The next thing I knew, my lips were on hers. She put her arms around my neck, her lips opened…"

"She kissed you back!" Randy exclaimed.

"Well… Yeah… I guess she did."

"Here's a better question. How do you feel about it? About her?" Randy pressed. John ran his hands over his short hair and sighed. "You still have feelings for her, don't you?"

John frowned. "I knew I'd still have feelings for her. I knew I wasn't over her back in college. Seeing her… Talking to her… Being so close to her… Just made it worse, but I thought I could control it. I thought I could hide it and just be her friend…"

"Well from the sounds of things, she couldn't control herself either," Randy said with a smile.

"It doesn't matter! She _has_ a boyfriend. I was supposed to just be okay with being friends, but no! I couldn't do that and I ruined everything." John pushed out his chair roughly, walked over to the patio door and flung it open with a thud, walking inside in a huff.

Trish closed the door and stopped, leaning back against it. "What the hell was I thinking?" Trish scolded herself softly. "You have a boyfriend, stupid. You're not supposed to be kissing your ex! What about Jason? What if Jason finds out? He'll flip! Ugh I can hear him now!"

Just then Chrissy appeared in the doorway of the living room. "Hey… You okay?" Trish shook her head 'no.' Chrissy walked over to Trish and grabbed her hand. She lead Trish to the couch. "Sit down. What's wrong?" Trish sighed but didn't answer. "Come on girly, tell me. What's wrong?"

"John kissed me… I kissed him back…" Trish blurted out.

Chrissy stared at Trish for a second, wide-eyed. "Umm what?"

Trish shook her head. "Yeah... We kissed..."

"Like a little peck on the cheek? Little peck on the lips? A kiss-kiss?"

Trish rolled her eyes. "Does it really matter?"

"Yes it matters, so answer the question."

"It was a kiss-kiss. He had me pinned up against his car... He was so close, I could smell how good he smelled. I was stuck... I couldn't do anything except stare back at him. My head was all foggy and the next thing I knew... His lips were on mine... My arms wrapped around his neck... I parted my lips..."

Chrissy grinned but quickly wiped it away when Trish looked up at her. "So what are you going to do?"

"What do you mean?" Trish asked confused.

"I mean what are you going to do? Are you going to tell Jason what happened? No, better yet are you going to leave that ass?"

Trish got up off the couch and stormed off towards her room. She was partly irritated by her friends questions, but the other part of her was still trying to fully digest what had happened that night. "I'm not going to do anything! I'm just going to... Going to go to sleep!"


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: I just want to warn everyone before reading this that this chapter gets a little rough at the end, so readers please beware. I would also like to thank MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton again! You guys are absolutely amazing! As always, reviews are appreciated! Here's the next chapter! Thank you for reading! Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

A week had gone by since the fiasco with John and even longer since she had talked to Jason. She only tried to call Jason once and she sent him two text messages. And as per his usual, he didn't bother answer. If the truth be told, Trish was getting to a place where it didn't bother her anymore. Not seeing him, not talking to him was okay with her now. Work had been a great distraction for her. Mr. Lynch had gotten some new leads in the case they were working and

Trish was swimming in work, following up those leads and doing a ton of documentation work. Trish had her face buried in paperwork when her phone vibrated on her desk. She was thankful for the distraction; her eyes were starting to cross from reading the paperwork over and over again, looking for anything that may have been missed. She put her pen down and reached over and picked up her phone. She tapped the screen and her phone lit up. She clicked on the little envelope that signaled she had a new text message and it popped up.

_Hey lady. How are you? – C_

_Hey. I'm okay. Up to my eyeballs in work. How are you? – T_

_I'm good. Enjoying my long weekend – C_

_Rub it in why don't you –T_

_LOL sorry. So do you have plans tonight? – C_

_Nope – T_

_Do you mind if I have some people over for dinner and to hang out? – C_

_Who? – T_

_Randy of course and Mike – C_

_No, I don't care – T_

_Are you coming home right after work? – C_

_Yeah. It's 4:40. I'm getting ready to leave now – T_

_Okay. We'll see you in a little bit – C_

Trish decided to leave the paperwork where it was rather than put it away, that way when she came back she'd be able to pick up right where she left off. She pulled her purse out of her bottom desk drawer, clocked out, and turned her computer off. She called to Mr. Lynch who was still back in his office and said goodbye to him. She walked out to her car and climbed in. She put her key in the ignition, started her car, and began her drive home.

* * *

Trish finally pulled into the parking lot of her apartment complex and pulled into a parking spot. She noticed Randy's black Tahoe parked in the lot and smiled to herself. _They had better be decent when I walk into that apartment_, she thought to herself. She got out of her car, locked the doors, and headed to the door. She slid her key in, unlocked the door, and pushed it open.

"I'm home," she called out, announcing her presence so she didn't get more than she wanted to see.

"We're in the living room," Chrissy's voice called back to her.

Trish kicked off her high heals and peeled off the jacket to her pants suit and hung it up on the coat rack. She tossed her keys into the key bowl on the table and put her purse on the table. She walked into the living room and stopped dead in her tracks. She was met by John's icy blue eyes looking back at her from the couch. He didn't say anything, just gave her a weak smile.

"You're finally home," Randy greeted Trish from the love seat where he sat next to Chrissy.

"Hey," Mike greeted her from the recliner.

"Hey guys," Trish greeted them with a small smile. "I'm… Uh… Gonna go get changed real quick. Chrissy could you come here for a second please?" Trish asked, gesturing towards her room.

"Sure Trish. I'll be right back guys."

Chrissy followed Trish down the hallway to her bedroom. Trish walked into her room and quickly turned around, grabbing Chrissy by the arm and pulled her into the bedroom. "You didn't tell me John was going to be here!" Trish snapped in a hushed tone.

"Yes I did. I told you I was going to have company!" Chrissy shot back in a whisper.

"You told me Randy and Mike! You said _nothing_ about John!"

"Well I couldn't invite Randy and Mike but leave out John! That would just be plain rude!" Chrissy retorted.

"I could seriously choke you right now!" Trish said as she picked up her brush and threw it at her.

Chrissy ducked out of the way of the oncoming brush. "It's not that big of a deal Trish."

"It would have been nice to know before hand!"

"Hurry up and get changed. You have dinner to cook," Chrissy informed her.

"_I_ have dinner to cook?"

"Uhh… I kinda told the guys about how good of a cook you are. And they're super excited to try your cooking. Oh and, Mike has been talking to a girl named Maryse, and she'll will be over for dinner as well."

Trish glared at Chrissy as she stripped out of her work clothes. "Relax. I'm going to help you. Get some pep in your step sister!" With that Chrissy darted out of Trish's room, closing the door behind her.

Trish rifled through her drawers trying to find something to wear. She finally settled on a pair of black capri yoga pants and a soft pink tank top. She left her hair up in the clip that she'd worn to work. She quickly gathered the clothes she'd worn to work in her arms and tossed them in her laundry basket. She gave herself a once over in the mirror and headed back out to the living room.

"Where's Mike?" Trish asked.

"He left. His girly friend wasn't feeling well, so he left to go take care of her," Randy answered.

"Oh okay then. Well… Chrissy let me know I was cooking dinner, so I'm going to get to that," Trish said as she disappeared into the kitchen.

"Want me to help you?" Chrissy called to her.

"You can help by staying out of my kitchen! You're a mess in the kitchen and I'm definitely not gonna clean that mess up," Trish called back.

"She really does love me," Chrissy told Randy and John with a chuckle.

Chrissy, Randy, and John sat in the living room watching TV waiting for dinner to be ready. After about a half an hour, the smell of the cooking food began to primate the living room. Randy's stomach growled loudly. "I hope it's almost done because that smells wonderful."

"I'm going to go make sure Trish doesn't need any help. I feel bad sitting here while she does all the work." John got up off the couch and headed into the kitchen.

Trish's back was to him. He leaned up against the doorway and silently watched her as she fluttered around the kitchen preparing their diner. He couldn't stop the smile that spread across his lips as she hummed softly to herself while she cooked. He watched her as she walked over to the sink and stopped to stare out the window. He silently walked up behind her. He went to reach his arms out to place them around her waist but stopped himself.

"Hey, do you need any help?" he asked her softly. She jumped at the sound of his voice and clutched her hand to her heart as she turned around to face him. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to see if you needed any help." He couldn't stop the grin that spread across his lips nor could he stop the chuckle that escaped his lips.

"Oh… You think that's funny Cena?"

"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you nearly jump out of the window. I was just trying to see if you needed any help."

Trish threw the dish towel she had in her hands at him. "No, I'm okay. Dinner is almost ready though."

John gave her the knee weakening smile she used to love so much. "I did want to talk to you about something though."

"Ohh… Umm… Okay… Sure, what's up?" she stammered. She could feel her heartbeat begin to flutter.

"About last week… I'm sorry…"

Trish put her hand up to stop him. "Let's not talk about it. It happened… It's over… No need to talk about it again." Trish turned back around to the stove. "You said you wanted to help. Why don't you grab those plates and bring them out to the dining room for me, please?"

John sighed softly to himself. "Sure." He walked over to the counter and grabbed the stack of plates and walked into the dining room with them.

Trish followed in behind him a few seconds later carrying a large platter of chicken parmesan and placed it on the table. "Randy and Chrissy, dinner is ready," Trish bellowed as she walked back into the kitchen. She reemerged in the dining room with a big bowl full of pasta and sauce and placed it on the table. "What do you guys want to drink?"

"Iced tea please," Chrissy answered.

"I'll have a coke please," Randy answered.

Trish turned to look at John. "How about you?"

"I'll come with you. Four drinks, a plate of bread and butter is going to be a handful for you to carry all by yourself."

John followed Trish into the kitchen. Trish pulled four cups down from the cabinet. She walked over to the freezer and filled the cups with ice. She set the cups on the counter and filled one with iced tea and two with coke. "What are you drinking John?"

"Coke is fine for me too."

Trish filled up the last cup with coke then took the iced tea and coke bottles and put them back in the fridge. Trish picked up two of the cokes and the butter and John picked up an iced tea, the other coke, and the plate of bread then walked back into the dining room. John put the plate of bread down, the put the cup of iced tea down in front of Chrissy and the coke in front of Randy, then took his seat at the table. Trish placed the butter on the table then handed one soda to John and then took the last seat at the table.

* * *

Dinner went well. The awkwardness that seemed to plague Trish and John seemed to dissipate. Conversation went well and everyone ate until they were stuffed. Chrissy and Randy decided to take a walk after dinner. John stayed behind to help Trish clean up. John carried all the dishes from the dining room into the kitchen and Trish loaded the dishwasher. There was no left over food, so Trish took the pots and pans she used to cook and put them into the dishwasher as well. After the kitchen and dining room were cleaned up and the dishes were in the dishwasher, John's phone rang.

John pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at the screen. "Oh, it's my dad. I've gotta take this. I'll be right back."

"Okay."

John disappeared outside and Trish went back to cleaning the stove. After a few minutes, Trish heard noise behind her. She assumed it was John and she turned around. To her surprise, it wasn't John. It was Jason. Jason lunged at Trish, wrapping his hand around her throat as he slammed the back of her head hard into the refrigerator.

"Did you think I wouldn't find out?" Jason screamed in her face.

"What… Are… You… Talking… About…" Trish gasped out. She grabbed at Jason's hand, trying to pull his hand away from her throat. She could smell the pungent odor of alcohol coming from Jason's breath.

"You fucking cheating on me you slut!" Jason shouted as he tightened his grip around her throat.

"Jason… I… Can't… Breathe…" she choked out as she frantically pulled at his hand trying to get it off of her throat so she could breathe again.

"_No one_ cheats on me you bitch! I heard about your little date with your little pretty boy. Did you think I wouldn't find out?" Jason yelled as he shook her hard, causing her head to bounce off the refrigerator again. "You probably fucked him too didn't you, you fuckin whore!" he berated her as he shook her hard again. "Makes sense since you sure as hell aren't giving me any. That's why I have to go to my other bitches to get some ass, especially if I want to get some good ass. I mean, it's not good or anything with you, but it's your fuckin job. You're supposed to give me what I want, when I want. And I think I want it right now." Jason took a long look at Trish. Her face was bright red. He squeezed harder and watched her gasp for air. Her face flushed from a deep red color into a purple. He smiled sadistically, watching the panic flood her eyes. "Beg me. Beg me to stop bitch."


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: I would like to thank MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton as always! You guys are absolutely amazing! As usual, reviews are appreciated! Here's the next chapter! Thank you for reading! Enjoy!**

***Please note: There is talk of drug use in this chapter.***

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Trish's ears began to ring loudly and she started to see spots when she blinked. She knew she was close to passing out. Just as she started to fade, Jason's hand was ripped from her neck and she collapsed in a heap on the floor. She clutched at her throat as she gasped for air. After taking a few deep breaths in, the haze began to lift, the ringing in her ears stopped and she became fully aware of the commotion going on in the kitchen. She looked up to see Jason and John struggling with each other, both trying to gain dominance. All she could do was watch as Jason and John banged into the counters, knocking things to the floor. John gave Jason a hard shove back to give himself some distance from Jason. Jason crashed into the dishwasher. He regained some of his composure and stumbled towards John, swinging wildly at him. John ducked out of the way and came back with a right of his own landing squarely on Jason's jaw, instantly causing his lip to swell and a tail of blood to leak out. Jason stumbled back two more steps, and took another wild swing missing John completely. John swung back, but he didn't miss. He landed another punch on Jason's jaw. Jason again stumbled, but this time lost his balance and fell to the floor. All Trish could do was watch in horror at the two men fighting.

Jason reached his hand up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "So this must be your little pretty boy, isn't it slut?" Jason spat in her direction..

"Jas…" Trish began.

John filled with anger at his words and couldn't stop himself from kicking Jason in the ribs. "Don't you _dare_ talk to her like that!" John warned, cutting her off mid sentence.

A sadistic smile spread across Jason's lips as he spat a mouthful of blood in her direction. "You must actually giving him some good ass if he's defending you like that. You don't deserve it. You're nothing but a trashy gutter whore anyway!"

"John and I didn't sleep together, Jason!"

"Yeah right! I know you did! Jeff saw you two at the restaurant and he told me all about the dinner you had together. How the fuck do you think I found out, you dumb bitch? Not because you told me. Girls like you don't go to dinner unless they're trying to give it up!"

John was infuriated by Jason's blatant disrespect for Trish. Anger cursed through his body and he cocked back ready to land another punch on Jason, but Trish quickly stepped between John and Jason and grabbed a hold of John's arm.

"Stop!" she yelled. John pulled back, not wanting to hurt her by mistake.

Jason pulled himself up off the floor. He stood there for a few minutes on wobbly legs trying to get himself together. "Let's go bitch. I'm leaving and you're coming with me."

"You're drunk and I'm not going anywhere with you!"

"Yes you are!" Jason growled as he reached over and grabbed Trish by the wrist, roughly pulling her towards him.

John quickly grabbed Jason by the arm, "Get your hands off of her!"

Jason gripped on to her tighter. "She's _my_ property and I'll do whatever I want with her."

"Jason, you're hurting me! Let go!" Trish pleaded.

"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," John warned through gritted teeth.

Jason released Trish's wrist. "Fine, you can keep the whore for the night. I'm outta here."

John used his free hand to protectively scoot Trish behind him. "That's the _best_ idea you've had all night."

Jason roughly brushed passed John, causing him to bump into Trish. John followed as Jason stalked into the living room. Jason flung the front door open causing it to bang loudly against the wall. He kicked the screen door open and walked out of the apartment. John followed to the door, watching as Jason jumped into his truck and drove off. John closed the screen door and the front door. He wanted to lock them to make sure if Jason returned, he wouldn't be able to get in, but he remembered Randy and Chrissy hadn't returned from their walk yet. He quickly turned around and ran back into the kitchen. He found Trish sitting on the floor with her knees pulled up and her head resting on her knees, sobbing.

He walked over to her quietly and crouched down next to her. He placed a hand gently on her arm and she instinctively flinched, bracing herself for whatever was coming next. "It's me," he whispered.

Her body relaxed but she didn't look up. His heart ached seeing her like this. He could see the faint bruises forming around her neck where Jason's hands had been and he could see the fiery red mark around her wrist where Jason had grabbed her. He sat down on the kitchen floor with her and gently took hold of her wrist, pulling her to him. After a soft tug, she came to him, and he pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his strong arms around her. She rested her head on his shoulder and sobbed into his neck. Feeling her tiny body tremble in his arms killed him.

"Shhh… It's okay," he whispered, trying to soothe her. "I'm here…" John rubbed the small of her back gently.

"What the fuck!"

John snapped his attention to the doorway. Randy stood in the doorway, surveying the mess in the kitchen. A few seconds later, Chrissy appeared in the doorway behind Randy. "Oh my god! What happened?"

"Jason," John answered softly.

Chrissy gasped and rushed over to Trish. She crouched down next to her friend and immediately saw the bruises around Trish's neck. "He did this to you?" she asked in shock as she glanced at Randy.

Trish just shook her head. She was still sitting on John's lap, clinging to him for dear life. Her crying had subsided and the trembling of her body had slowed. Being wrapped in John's strong arms made her feel safe.

"Come on. Let's get you to bed," John suggested. Trish nodded but didn't let go of him. He easily stood with her in his arms. He turned to look at Chrissy for directions to where her room was.

"Down the hall, second door to the left is hers," Chrissy answered, still trying to digest what had happened.

John walked down the hallway until he found her door. He shifted her weight to one arm and used his free hand to turn the light on. He walked into her room and over to her bed. He pulled back the blankets and gently placed her on the bed. He pulled the blankets up around her, covering her. "Try and rest." He gave her a soft smile and turned to leave.

Trish reached up and grabbed his arm before he could walk away. John stopped and turned back around to face her. "Please don't leave me alone," she pleaded.

John obliged and sat down on the bed next to her. "It's okay… I'm here."

John kicked his sneakers off and swung his legs up on the bed. He leaded back against the headboard, stretched his legs out, and crossed them. Trish scooted closer to him and John reached over and pulled her close to him. She laid her head down on his side and he wrapped his arm around her. John sat with her for until she fell asleep and even after she fell asleep, he stayed watched her sleep.

About two hours had gone by and Randy finally appeared in the doorway. "She okay?" Randy asked softly.

"Yeah. She's sleeping."

"You wanna get ready and head out?"

John nodded. He gently slid himself out from under Trish and off of the bed. He stood there for a few minutes to make sure she didn't wake back up. When he was confident she would continue sleeping, he picked up his shoes and quietly followed Randy down the hallway and back to the living room.

"Is she okay?" Chrissy asked.

"Yeah, I think so. She's sleeping."

"I feel so bad that I wasn't here. Thank god you were. Thank you for saving her."

John nodded. "Let me help clean up the mess in the kitchen before I go."

"It's okay. I helped Chrissy clean it up already." Randy gave Chrissy a hug and a soft kiss on the lips. "I'll see you later babe." I want you to lock the screen door, the front door, and I want you to deadbolt it too. Call me if you need me, okay?"

Chrissy nodded. She followed them to the front door. "I will."

John followed Randy out the door. Randy stopped and turned back around. "Close the door and lock up now babe."

The two men stood outside and listened for the door to lock. When they were sure Chrissy had locked up, they turned to head towards the car. Randy looked at John as they walked towards the car.

"You okay man?"

John nodded. "He's lucky Randy… So lucky… If she hadn't grabbed on to me, I would have fuckin killed him… There's absolutely no doubt in my mind… I would have killed him…"

Randy patted John on the shoulder. "I know man… I know. He's lucky I wasn't here too or that I didn't come in when this shit was going down… Between the two of us, there wouldn't be anything left. I haven't liked the scumbag since I heard him talking to her on the phone."

The guys walked up to the car. Randy walked to the driver's side door and John to the passenger's side. Randy unlocked the doors and they climbed into the car. Randy put the key in the ignition and started the engine and pulled off.

John turned his head to look at Randy. "I hope to god she hasn't been dealing with this shit their entire relationship."

"He's always talked to her like that from what I understand," Randy answered.

"I mean physically… Verbally is bad enough, but I swear to god if I find out he's been putting his hands on her the entire time… I'll snap his fuckin neck."

There was a loud bang at the door. Trish stirred slightly at the sound. Light poured through the blinds in Trish's bedroom. She rolled over groggily and looked at the clock. 2:00 pm it read and then she heard another bang bang bang at the door. Trish slowly sat up in her bed. She stretched her arms out to either side of her to steady herself as the room spun around her.

"Ugghhh," she groaned. She reached up and rubbed the back of her head. Her head was pounding and she felt dizzy. She waited to see if Chrissy would answer the door, but the house was silent.

_**BANG BANG BANG**_

The bangs at the door were now becoming louder. She drug herself out of bed and towards the front door. _I guess Chrissy is out_, she thought to herself as she walked to the door when she noticed the TV was off. She got to the front door, unlocked it, and pulled it open. She looked up and saw Jason standing in front of her. Trish jumped back, trying to close the door but Jason was too quick. He put his hand up and stopped her from closing the door.

"Baby please wait," Jason begged. "I just want to talk to you. Please baby."

"I don't have anything to say to you, please just leave."

Jason took his sunglasses off his eyes and looked at her. He looked haggard, like he hadn't slept in days. Tears were streaming down his face. "Baby I'm so sorry about last night. I was drunk... I was wrong... Wrong for what I did... Wrong for what I said... I know I can't take it back, and that's a guilt I'll have to live with for the rest of my life but please baby... Please let me fix this... Let me make it up to you. Please, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it. It was the alcohol, it wasn't me. You know I've never done anything like that before."

"Jay... I... I..."

Jason took a step towards Trish and lightly grabbed on to her hand. He got down on his knees and wrapped his other arm around her legs. He rested his head on her stomach. "Let me fix this... Let me make it up to you baby. You know I love you Trish. I didn't mean to hurt you. It was the alcohol and the... the... drugs..."

"What drugs?" Trish asked, confused.

"I was on my way to your house yesterday when I was done work. I missed you so much, I wanted to see you but Alex called me and told me to stop by the bar to have a beer with him for his birthday. I told him no because I just wanted to get to you but he started raggin on me. So I told him I would stop for one quick beer and then I was out of there because I was on my way to you... And then... One beer turned into two beers which turned into three beers and before I knew it I was there for an hour. Alex told me to come to the bathroom with him so I did and that's when he took out the coke and made two lines. I told him no, I was clean... I stopped doin that shit for you baby... You know that... But he insisted. He kept on and kept on and I caved. I caved baby. I wasn't strong enough to fight it... I'm so sorry baby... Please forgive me..." Jason wrapped his arms around Trish's legs and squeezed her tight, sobbing into her stomach.

"I... I..." Trish couldn't help but to feel sorry for Jason. "I'll think about it, but right now you need to leave."

Jason abruptly stopped sobbing and looked up at her. "Why is your..." Jason cut himself off and stood up. "I'm sorry baby. It still hasn't gotten all the way out of my system."

"I'm not feeling well Jay. My head hurts really bad and I really just want to lay down."

"I'm so sorry for that but that's fine. I'll go now but I want to see you tomorrow. I'll be sober then and I want to start making this right." He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on her lips. Then turned to leave. Trish stood at her door watching Jason walk to his truck.

_Jason does love me. He's been with me for three years now... That has to mean something, right? That's the first time I've ever seen him cry. Maybe he's serious this time,_ she thought to herself. Oh well... _I need to lay down right now._ Trish closed the door and locked it then walked back down the hall towards her bed to try and sleep her massive headache away.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: I would like to thank MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton as always! You guys are great! As usual, reviews are appreciated! Here's the next chapter! Thank you for reading!**

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**Chapter 9**

It wasn't until 6:00 that Trish finally woke back up. She was starving and her belly growling is what woke her up. She sat up in bed and stretched, and then she reached over to her bed side table and picked up her phone. She tapped the screen and her phone lit up.

"Wow… My phone went off 14 times and I didn't hear it at all… I must have slept hard," she said out loud to herself.

She clicked on her text message inbox and her text log popped up. 6 from Chrissy, 3 from John, 1 from a number she didn't know, and 4 from Jason. She clicked on Chrissy's messages first.

_Hey momma. I hope you're feeling better. I got called into work this morning because Jenn called out. I didn't wanna wake you. If you need me at all, call and I'll come home – C_

_Just checkin on ya. How ya feelin? – C_

_I'm guessing you're still asleep? – C_

_Guess so – C_

_Call me when you wake up – C_

_You still didn't call me bitch. I'm done at 6, I'll see you soon – C_

Trish chuckled at her friend's last message and decided to text her back.

_Hey. I'm okay. Just have a killer headache. I just woke up. Text me when you're close and I'll start dinner. See you when you get here – T_

She backed out of her conversation with Chrissy and clicked on John's messages.

_Morning. Just checking on you. How are you feeling? Wanted to see how you are. I hope you're not mad at me for last night but I wasn't gonna stand there and let that happen – J_

_No answer? – J_

_Okay, either you're pissed at me or you're sleeping. I'm hoping you're just still sleeping – J_

Trish read John's messages, but backed out of his conversation without answering. She moved on to the next conversation. It was a message from a number she didn't know. She clicked on the message with curiosity.

_Hey Trish. It's Randy. I strong armed your number from John. Well not so much strong armed, but I did steal his phone and take your number. I hope you're not mad. I just wanted to see how you're feeling? – R_

Trish smiled at Randy's message. That was nice of him, she thought to herself. She saved his number then clicked on the 'reply' button.

_Hey Randy. No, I'm not mad at all. I'm okay. Just have a headache. Thanks for checking up on me – T_

Trish moved on to Jason's messages. She could feel her stomach twist into nervous knots.

_Hi baby. I just wanted to tell you how much I love you and how much I miss you – J_

_Can I come see you now baby? – J_

_Baby? – J_

_Okay, I can't stand not seeing you. I'll be over at 7 to see you – J _

To say that Trish was less than thrilled about Jason's decision to come over was an understatement. After last night, she really had no desire to see him but she also didn't feel like arguing with him about it. She flung the covers off and got out of bed. She walked over to her dresser and looked in the mirror. She gasped at her reflection. She could see light purple bruises on either side of her neck. She reached up and touched one side of her neck and winced. Her neck was still sore.

She stood there, staring at her reflection and tears welled up in her eyes. "I can't believe someone who claims they love me could do something like this to me. And then the same person show up on my doorstep this morning and act the way he did. He was a completely different person," she said out loud. She was lost in her own thoughts when her phone went off, causing her to jump. She picked up her phone and opened the message.

_I'm leaving work now - C_

She took one more look at herself then walked out of her room and to the kitchen. She began searching for something to cook for dinner. She looked at the refrigerator and shuddered as the memories from the previous night flooded her mind. She mentally shook the memories away and turned her attention to the cabinets instead.

After a few minutes of searching, she found a bag of just add water chicken noodle soup and decided on that. She pulled a large pot out of the bottom cabinet, measured out the water needed then placed it on the stove and turned the flame on. She leaned back against the sink, waiting for the water to boil. As she stood there she stared at her phone, trying to fight the urge to text John. She tried to distract herself by emptying the dishwasher. After putting all the dishes away, she checked on the water again. It was just barely beginning to boil. She leaned back against the sink waiting for the water again.

Her urge had won. She reached over and grabbed her phone off the counter. She tapped her screen, turning her phone on, and then went straight to her text messages. She clicked on John's name and his messages popped up. She stood there for a few seconds, debating on what to say, and then began typing her message.

_Hey John. I just woke up a little bit ago. I'm okay. Nasty headache though. I'm not mad at you. I'm glad you were there last night. I don't know what he would have done to me if you weren't there. I haven't felt that safe in a long time. Thank you – T_

Trish put her phone down and grabbed the bag of soup mix. She tore open the bag and dumped it into the boiling water. She grabbed a large spoon out of the drawer and gave the soups a stir. Just then she heard the front door open and then close.

"Trish? I'm home!" Chrissy bellowed from the door.

"I'm in the kitchen," Trish called back.

A few seconds later Chrissy appeared in the kitchen behind Trish. "Hey lady. How are ya?" Trish turned around and smiled at Chrissy. Chrissy immediately gasped when she saw her friend. Chrissy immediately covered her mouth with her hand.

"Well hello to you too," Trish said sarcastically.

"I'm sorry… I just… I wasn't prepared for that." Chrissy took a step closer and reached up to grab a section of Trish's hair. She pulled the hair back to get a better look at Trish's neck. She let that side go and did the same to the other side. She shook her head. Tears welled up in Chrissy's eyes at her friend's appearance. She wrapped her arms around Trish's shoulders and hugged her tightly. "I'm so sorry that bastard did this to you."

Trish squeezed her friend back. "I'm okay. Really I am. I just have a headache." Trish looked up at the taller woman. "Come on. Dinners ready. Let's eat. I'm starving!"

Trish walked over to the cabinet and pulled out two bowls then walked back over to the stove. She pulled a ladle out and began scooping the soup into the bowls. Chrissy walked over to the drawer and pulled out two spoons.

"Do you want crackers?" Chrissy asked?

"Sure," Trish answered as she went to the refrigerator and pulled out two cans of Coke for them to drink with dinner.

The girls gathered up all the necessary items for dinner and walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. Chrissy grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. Trish checked her phone to see if John answered her, and when she saw that he didn't she placed her phone on the coffee table next to her and cracked open her can of soda. The girls ate their dinner while watching the news. They kept the conversation light and talked about Chrissy's day at work. Neither girl wanted to talk about the events of last night.

After dinner, the girls sat on the couch relaxing watching TV together. Trish glanced at the clock and it read 6:30. Trish searched for an easy way to tell Chrissy that Jason had showed up earlier and that he took it upon himself to decide to come over at 7. She could hear Chrissy now. She knew Chrissy was going to be pissed that she'd even talked to him.

"So… Umm… Jason will be here in a half an hour," Trish blurted out.

Chrissy's attention snapped from the TV to her friend. "He WHAT?" she shrieked. "Are you fuckin kidding me? Please tell me you're joking!"

"I know… I know… He showed up earlier. He apologized for what happened. He said it wasn't him. He said it was drugs. He said he did coke last night and that's why he acted the way he did. He apologized over and over and he said he wanted to make it up to me. I told him I'd think about things but I wanted to go back to sleep because my head hurt so badly. While I was sleeping he sent me a few messages. The messages shocked me because they definitely weren't typical Jason messages and when I didn't answer, he took initiative and said he'd wanted to see me and he'd be here at 7," Trish explained.

"Yeah I'm sure he's fuckin sorry! He…"

Trish cut her off. "Look, I'll show you." Trish leaned forward and grabbed her phone off the coffee table. She tapped her screen and her phone lit up. Just as she did that, a new message popped up on her screen.

_Hey, I'm sorry I didn't answer sooner. I was working out. My phone was in my locker. I'm glad to hear you're okay. I was worried about you. Call me if you need anything, okay? And that's what you do when you care about someone – J_

Trish stared at the message, and read and reread the message to make sure she read it correctly. Chrissy leaned in and read the message from John. A devilish smile spread across Chrissy's face and she snatched the phone from Trish's hand.

"Hey! What are you doing? Gimme that!"

Chrissy and Trish struggled for the phone. Chrissy turned herself around and stuck her butt out at Trish, keeping her at bay. Chrissy's nimble fingers quickly typed something and then she sat back down and handed the phone back to Trish. "Too late."

Trish quickly pulled up the conversation with John and read what her friend had sent.

_Thanks for the offer. I will definitely call you if I need anything. You still care about me? – T_

Trish glared at Chrissy. "Seriously?" Seconds later, her phone went off again.

"What'd he say?" Chrissy asked the devilish smile still on her face.

Trish looked down at her phone and read the message.

_Of course I still care. I never stopped caring – J_

This time Trish couldn't stop herself from responding.

_Really? – T_

_Really – J_

Trish and Chrissy passed a look between them after reading John's last message.

"Don't look at me, say something back!" Chrissy told her.

Trish stared at her phone, unsure what to say. Her mind raced with questions. The doorbell ringing took her attention from her phone. "Jason's here," she blurted out.

Chrissy threw her arms up in the air. "Figures this asshole would fuckin show up and ruin it!" she scoffed, folding her arms across her chest.

Trish quickly turned her screen off, put her phone on vibrate, and got up off the couch to answer the door. She pulled the door open and was greeted by Jason's smiling face. He was standing there with a large vase of roses in his hands.

"Hello baby, these are for you," he said as he offered the vase to her.

"Oh… Uh… Thanks."

"So can I come in or are you going to make me stand here all night?"

Trish backed up and gestured for him to come in. "Sure, come in."

Jason walked past Trish and straight into the living room. Trish closed the door behind him and followed him to the living room. Jason stood in front of the couch looking at Chrissy.

"Oh… _You're_ here," he said with a scowl.

"Where the fuck else would I be? I live here ya jackass," Chrissy snapped back.

Jason turned to Trish, "See, this is the fuck… Wait, I'm sorry. Could you please ask your friend to not be disrespectful to me please?"

Trish put the vase of flowers down on the coffee table. "Come on, stop both of you."

Jason flopped down on the couch next to Chrissy. Chrissy scowled in disgust. She got up off the couch and sat on the recliner. "Come here baby, sit next to me." Jason reached up and took Trish's hand, leading her to the spot next to him.

Trish followed and sat down next to Jason. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him. The trio sat in silence watching TV for awhile. As Trish sat in silence, she didn't really pay too much attention to the TV. She let her mind wander and she couldn't help but to think about the conversation she was having with John. _Of course he still cares_, she thought_,_ _he cares for me as a friend_. Trish pushed her earlier conversation out of her mind. _Sitting here like this with Jason doesn't feel the same way it used to… Hell, it doesn't even feel the same as it did when John was holding me last night._

Trish's thoughts were interrupted by Jason's phone ringing. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and glanced at the screen. He sent the caller to voicemail and slid his pocket. Seconds later, his phone rang again. He looked at the screen again, and sent the caller to voicemail once more.

"I… Uh… Gotta pee. I'll be back." Jason got up off the couch and disappeared down the hallways towards the bathroom.

Chrissy turned and looked at Trish with a grin. "If we hurry, we can be in your car and outta here before he comes back."

Trish chuckled and shook her head. "He'd come back." The sound of Jason's phone ringing again interrupted their conversation. Trish looked along the couch for the phone but didn't see it. She stuck her hand between the cushions and pulled Jason's phone out. She turned it to face her and read the screen.

"Who the hell keeps calling his dumbass?" Chrissy asked.

Trish turned the phone to Chrissy so she could see the display. _Booty Call_ it read. Jason appeared in the door before Trish had time to put his phone down. Trish froze in fear when she saw him.

"How many times do I have to fucking tell you? Don't touch my phone you dumb bitch!" Jason yelled angrily.

Chrissy got up and rushed to her friend's side. "Don't you even think about coming near her! I'll kick you so hard in the balls so hard your fuckin grandkids will feel it!"

"Fuck you. This doesn't concern you!" Jason growled, still standing in the doorway.

"Mother fu…"

Trish cut Chrissy off. "Leave now Jason!" she screamed as she threw his phone at him which began to ring again.

"Who the hell do yo…" Jason began as he bent down to pick up his phone.

"I said leave! Now!" Chrissy looked at Trish with surprise. She almost couldn't believe Trish was yelling at Jason. "Go! And call back your little 'Booty Call.' Seems like she can't wait to get in touch with you!"

Jason stalked towards the front door. "Fuck you both. And I will go call her. I was headed there after I was done here away. Some one's gotta give it to me right, you sure as hell don't," he spat on his way out.

Chrissy followed behind him, closing the door and locking it. She walked back into the living room to Trish. "I'm so proud of you!"

"I should have known better… I should have known it was all an act… He didn't change! He'll never change!"


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: I would like to thank MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton as usual! You guys are amazing! As usual, reviews are appreciated! Here's the next chapter! Thank you for reading! Enjoy guys!**

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**Chapter 11**

It was 9:00 am when Trish woke up on Sunday. She still felt exhausted. She also still had a slight headache and her neck was still sore. She laid in bed for a little while longer since she didn't feel like getting out of bed yet. She reached over and grabbed the remote from her bedside table and turned the TV on. She found Sunday morning cartoons and settled back down in her bed to watch them.

About an hour later she decided it was time to get out of bed. Her stomach growled letting her know it was time to eat. She turned off her TV and peeled back her blankets. She swung her legs off the side of her bed and stretched. She reached over and grabbed her cell phone and then got out of bed and shuffled down the hallway towards the kitchen.

Chrissy was already in the kitchen when she got there pouring herself a cup of coffee. "Morning."

Chrissy turned around to face Trish. "Morning. Want a cup?" Chrissy offered.

"Yes please."

Chrissy reached up and grabbed another mug down and poured Trish a cup of coffee. Trish walked over to the refrigerator, took out the creamer, and brought it over to the counter. The girls fixed their cups, walked into the living room, and sat down on the couch. Trish placed her phone on the coffee table and sat back on the couch. Chrissy picked up the remote and turned the TV on. The girls sat silently sipping their coffee. The sound of Trish's phone going off broke the silence. Trish leaned forward and placed her coffee mug on the table and picked up her phone. She leaned back on the couch as she tapped her screen and then clicked on the text message envelope.

_Good morning. Just checking on you. How are ya feeling? – J_

"Who's texting you?" Chrissy asked curiously.

"John," Trish answered.

A smile spread across Chrissy's face. "Oh? What did he have to say?"

"He just asked how I was feeling," Trish answered as she texted John back.

_I'm okay. Head doesn't hurt as bad. Thanks for asking :) – T_

"Well that was awfully nice of him."

Trish chuckled. "Yes it was." Trish's phone went off again in her hand.

_So Randy is planning to stop by your place in a little to see Chrissy. Would you mind if I came with him? – J_

"Now what did he say?"

"Did I ever tell you how nosy you are?" Trish teased with a chuckle. "He said Randy was coming over to see you in a little bit..."

"Yeah?" Chrissy pressed.

Trish shook her head. "He asked if it was okay with me if he came by with Randy."

"And you said...?" Chrissy pressed.

"Nothing. I didn't answer yet," Trish answered with a grin.

"Oh really?" Chrissy asked.

Without warning she snatched Trish's phone out of her hands. She stretched out one arm to keep Trish at bay as she texted John back. Trish struggled to get her phone back, but it was of no use. Trish sighed and gave up. She sat back on the couch and waited for Chrissy to be done.

"You know, it almost takes all the fun out of it when you give up like that," Chrissy told her as she handed Trish her phone back.

Trish immediately went to the conversation with John to see what Chrissy had sent him.

_Actually, I'd like it a lot if you came. I'll see you soon? – T_

Trish looked up from her phone and glared at her friend. Chrissy shot Trish an innocent smile and shrugged.

_Great. We'll be there soon. Pretty boy has to try on at least 3 more shirts only to end up wearing the first one he had on then we'll be ready to leave – J_

Trish chuckled at John's response. She gently tossed her phone on the couch next to her, picked back up her coffee mug, then nestled back into the couch.

"What's so funny?" Chrissy asked as her curiosity got the better of her. Trish pointed to her phone as she took a sip of her coffee.

Chrissy reached over and grabbed the phone so she could read the message. "He's not a pretty boy! He just likes to look nice for me."

"Apparently he is," Trish teased. "I'm gonna go take a shower and get dressed before they get here." Trish got off the couch and disappeared down the hallway towards her room.

* * *

Trish took a quick shower and then went into her room to get dressed. It was a hot Florida day, so Trish decided on a pair of cute jean shorts and a navy blue spaghetti strap tank top. Since her hair was still wet and she didn't feel like blow drying her hair, she just brushed it out and left it down. She reached for the eyeliner on her dresser but stopped. _No, that's what Jason would want. I'm not wearing makeup,_ she told herself.

She walked out of her bedroom and back into the bathroom to hang up her wet towels when she heard voices in the living room. She quickly hung up her towels and walked out into the living room. The first thing she saw was John looking at her with a big smile. She smiled back at him as she crossed the room to meet him. He extended his arms to give her a hug.

He breathed in her scent deeply as he wrapped his arms around her tiny frame and hugged her tight. "Hey you. You left your hair down," he said softly into her hair.

She smiled softly. "Hey John."

He loosened his grip and leaned back to look at her, still holding on her to hips. A mixture shock and anger spread across his face.

"What's wrong?"

He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, trying to calm himself before he spoke. "Your neck… You didn't tell me about your neck."

"Oh…" she answered softly. She subconsciously brought her hands up to her neck to cover it.

John took one hand off her waist and brushed a section of hair back away from her face and neck. He gently took her small hand and pulled it away from her neck so he could see her neck. He winced when he saw the purple bruises. She looked away from him with shame. He hooked his forefinger under her chin, making her look at him.

"It's not your fault… What he did to you…" John trailed off.

Trish silently nodded. He wrapped both of his arms around her waist and pulled her close to his body, hugging her tightly. He looked over her head at Randy and shook his head in disgust.

Randy patted Trish on the shoulder softly. "John's right. And he's lucky I wasn't here too because if I was… Between the two of us… He'd be dead."

For the sake of Trish, they dropped the conversation. Chrissy and Randy snuggled up together on the loveseat and John and Trish shared the couch. Everyone kept the conversation light just talking about their upcoming work weeks. The sound of Trish's phone ringing interrupted their conversation. Trish leaned forward to see the screen. _Jason_ it read.

Chrissy rolled her eyes. "What the hell does that jackasss want?"

Trish hesitated for a minute, debating on whether or not she wanted to answer it. She finally sighed and picked it up.

"Yes Jason?"

"Who's this?" a female voice came through the receiver.

"Who's this?" Trish asked surprised.

"Bitch I asked you a question. Who the fuck are you?" the female demanded.

"This is Trish, who the hell are you?"

"Look, I don't really care who the fuck you are. This is Jason's girlfriend and you had better stop calling him and leave him alone. He's my man so back off!" the female threatened.

"Really? I thought I was Jason's girlfriend, but hey… You can have him!"

"What?"

Trish heard rustling and she could hear Jason's voice yelling in the background. "What the fuck are you doing, you stupid bitch! How many times do I have to tell you don't touch my god damn phone! Babe? Babe? Are you there baby?"

"I'm here," Trish snapped.

"Baby, don't listen to her. That's my buddy's chick, she was just screwing around. You know you're my one and only, baby."

"Whatever Jason… You know what? I really don't care anymore… Do whatever you want… I'm done."

"What the hell do you mean you're done?" Jason shouted angrily.

"I mean I'm done."

"Done with what?" Jason growled.

"I'm done… Done with everything… I'm done with relationships… I'm done with dating… I'm done with _this_ relationship, Jason! I'm done with _you_!" Trish yelled, her anger finally getting the better of her.

"Bitch, you're not done with me until I say so. You're mine!"

"Screw you Jason! I'm done!" she yelled and hung up the phone on him. She tossed her phone onto the table, her hands trembling with the anger that flowed through her body. After a few deep breaths, Trish looked up and realized all eyes were on her. "Sorry about that," she apologized softly.

"Sorry? Sorry for what? That was great!" Randy said with a big smile. "I'm so proud of you, I could kiss you!" Randy sprang up off the loveseat and walked over to Trish. He took her face in his hands and gave her a big, wet, sloppy kiss on the cheek.

Trish chuckled. "Thanks."

Chrissy followed Randy over and hugged Trish. "I'm proud of you too! It's about time you listened to us and dropped that ass!"

"This calls for a celebration!" Randy announced.

"Really Randy? A celebration?" Trish repeated, shaking her head. "I hardly think its celebration worthy."

"Fuck yeah it is! How about us guys cook for you ladies at our place and we'll do some swimming tomorrow?" Randy offered. "Oh wait, we can wait until Friday or Saturday if it's easier for you and your work schedule," Randy offered, looking at Trish. "Chrissy told me you were working on a big case."

"Actually, I called my boss and explained what happened… I was only going to take Monday off, but Mr. Lynch insisted I take the week. He said he was planning on being back in the courtroom by Tuesday and they'd be able to manage just fine without me," Trish explained.

"Oh, I didn't know you took off," Chrissy said.

"Yeah… I really didn't wanna go to work like this," Trish said pointing at her neck. "I was hoping that by Tuesday morning it wouldn't look so bad."

Randy frowned when he looked at Trish's neck again. "Chrissy's working a half day Monday and I only have one appointment, so we'll be done by 12:30. Let's plan for Monday. Be at our place like 1:30ish?"

John turned to Trish. "I only have one patient scheduled for Monday as well, so I'll be coming back this way. I can take Randy in so he can ride back to our place with Chrissy and I'll swing by and pick you up when I'm done. That way you don't have to bring two cars."

"Oh… Okay," Trish answered.

"I'll probably be done by 11:30, so I would be here by 12:30 at the latest. Is that okay?" John asked.

"That sounds like a perfect idea," Chrissy chimed in. "A little extra time together will be good for you two."

Randy snickered at Chrissy's comment. "Got that right babe."

Trish shot Chrissy a look and shook her head. "That's fine John. Just let me know when you're on your way so I'm ready."

"Sure, I can do that."

"Alright babe. I gotta get going. I have a client coming in for a session soon," Randy said looking at Chrissy.

Chrissy pouted. "I don't want you to leave."

Randy hugged her tight. "I know babe, but you'll be seeing my lovely face again before you know it."

Chrissy smiled. "I can't wait."

Randy leaned down and gave her a soft kiss. "Neither can I."

"Walk me out?" John asked, looking at Trish, wanting to give Randy and Chrissy a little privacy.

"Sure."

John and Trish got up and headed to the door. John walked out the front door and Trish followed behind him. John turned back around to face Trish. He leaned back on the railing behind him then reached out and pulled Trish close to him. "I'm proud of you too," he whispered. He quickly bent his head down and placed a soft kiss on the corner of her mouth.

Trish could feel her knees buckle slightly. Her face tingled where his lips had touched. "Oh… Uh… Thank you."

John chuckled softly at her reaction. "You okay?"

"Yeah… I'm fine."

"After all these years… I still do something to you, don't I?" he asked with a grin.

Trish pushed away from him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do," he answered simply.

Just then Randy came walking out the door, saving Trish from the conversation she didn't want to have with John. "Ready pecker head?"

John punched Randy in the arm. "Yeah, I guess so."

"See you lovely ladies tomorrow," Randy said as he headed to the car.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow," John repeated with a smile. "I'll call you when I'm on my way."

Trish nodded.

"Bye guys!" Chrissy called to the guys as they walked to the car.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Thank you for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are awesome! Here's the next chapter guys! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Trish woke up at 10:00am on Monday. She smiled when she woke up and stretched. It felt good to sleep in on a Monday. She sat up in bed and looked around her room. The sun was shining brightly outside. It looked like it was a beautiful day. She noticed her head didn't hurt anymore and that made her happy. She decided she'd get up now and get started getting ready. She knew John would be there soon to pick her up and she decided it would be better to be ready too early than late.

She threw back the covers and scooted out of bed. She walked down the hallway and into the kitchen. She reached into the cabinet and pulled out a breakfast bar. She put it on the counter and pulled out a glass out of the other cabinet, then walked over to the refrigerator and pulled the carton of milk out. She poured herself a glass of milk then returned the carton to the refrigerator. She stood at the sink, staring out the window as she ate her breakfast bar and drank her milk. When she was done, she put her glass into the dishwasher, and then headed down the hallway to the bathroom to take a shower.

When she was done her shower she walked to her room in a towel. She began her search for something to wear. After a few minutes of searching, she decided on a pair of cute jean shorts that she paired with a light purple tank top. She decided to put her hair up since she knew she was going to be out in the sun and swimming. She brushed her hair back and then twisted it up and secured it with a clip. She decided on light makeup and only put on eyeliner and mascara. When she was satisfied with her reflection, she walked across the hallway to Chrissy's room and grabbed the blue bag at the end of her bed that contained a change of clothes and Chrissy's bathing suit. While she was in Chrissy's room, she heard her phone go off.

Trish brought the bag back to her room, tossed in on her bed, and then picked up her phone. She tapped the screen and clicked on the text message envelope.

_Hey, I should be there in 10 minutes. Are you ready? If not that's okay. I'll wait – J_

_No that's fine. I'm ready – T _

_Okay. See you soon – J_

Trish unzipped the bag and shoved her bathing suit inside. She turned around to grab her brush from her dresser when she caught her reflection in the mirror. She saw the bruises on her neck and stopped. She leaned closer to the mirror to get a better look. She absent mindedly traced her finger over the bruises on the right side of her neck. The sound of the door bell ringing took her attention away from the bruises. She turned and grabbed the bag from her beg and slung it over her shoulder before heading out of heading out of her room.

She hurried through the house to answer the door. When she got to the front door her reflection caught her attention again. The bruises stuck out to her like a sore thumb even though they weren't as dark. She quickly reached up into her hair and pulled the clip out. She shook her head causing her long hair to fall around her face and neck. She pulled the door open and was greeted by John's smiling face.

"Hey. You look… Great… And you left your hair down," he greeted her with a grin.

She chuckled softly and shook her head. "Hello to you too John."

"Ready to go?"

"Yep, let's go." Trish pulled the door closed behind her and locked it. She followed John to his Mustang.

He walked slightly ahead of her, and opened the passenger side door for her. He reached his hand out and took the bag off of her shoulder. She slid into the car and he closed the door. He opened the trunk and tossed the bag in. He walked over to the driver's side and climbed into the car. He slid the key into the ignition and started the car.

"Ready to go?" he asked. She nodded and he pulled out of the parking lot.

* * *

After a short, quiet ride, John pulled up out front of the house he shared with Randy. He parked the car and turned off the engine. He got out and walked to the back of the car. He popped open the trunk and pulled out the bag. He continued his way around the car to the passenger's side to open the door for Trish, but she was already getting out. When she was out he locked the doors and headed to the front door of the house. Trish followed behind him. He slid the key in and unlocked the door. He waved his arm, gesturing for her to walk in first. He followed in behind her, closing the door behind him.

"So, what do ya wanna do until Randy and Chrissy get here?" John asked as he sat the bag down on the floor.

"Umm… I dunno?"

John chuckled. "Are ya hungry?"

"No, I ate before I left."

"Okay… Wanna just watch some TV until they get here?"

Trish nodded, then walked over and sat down on the couch.

"Wanna drink?" John asked.

"Sure."

"Iced tea? Water? Milk? Coke?"

"Coke please."

"You got it." John disappeared into the kitchen.

A few minutes later John returned with two glasses of soda in his hands. He walked over to Trish and handed on glass to her and placed his on the table. He walked over to the couch and flopped down next to Trish. He turned on the TV and started channel surfing.

"Anything in particular you'd like to watch?" he asked looking at Trish.

"No, not really."

John landed on Sports Center and left it on. They sat there in silence together watching TV. John's phone went off and he pulled it out of his pocket to read the message. "That was Randy. He said they're running late and won't be getting here until 2:30."

"Oh… Okay."

There was a long silence between them. "Can I talk to you about something?" he finally asked, breaking the silence.

"Sure, what's up?" she answered.

John got up off the couch and stood in front of her. He scooted the coffee table back slightly with his legs, and then sat down on it. He wiped his palms on his jeans and chuckled to himself. "I can't believe nervous I am right now."

Trish's stomach began to flood with butterflies. She gave him a nervous half smile.

"I was going to keep my mouth shut and just let it go but I can't. And last night when I saw the way you reacted when I kissed you… I can't."

Trish shifted nervously in her seat. "John, I don't wan…"

John quickly reached over and took her small hands in his. "Letting you go was the biggest mistake I've ever made. I was young and stupid but I never stopped caring about you… Shit I never stopped loving you. I just dealt with my mistake. Not seeing you or talking to you made it a little easier, but now seeing you again… Being around you… Holding you in my arms the other night… When I kissed you… It reminded me how much I love you… How much I'm still _in_ love with you."

Trish sat in a stunned silence looking back at him. She blinked hard and shook her head trying to straighten out her thoughts. "I… I…"

John leaned in and covered her lips with his. He released her hands and wrapped his strong arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. He slid one hand up her back until he found the back of her neck. He intertwined his fingers in her hair and gave it a soft tug causing a soft moan to escape her lips. He took advantage of this and slid his tongue into her warm mouth. He explored the depths of her mouth with his tongue, wrestling with her tongue for dominance. She couldn't stop herself from reaching up and snaking her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her.

John broke off their kiss and scooted off the coffee table. He used his knee to push her legs open wider for him and kneeled on the floor in front of her. He tugged once more at her hair, gently making her tilt her head upwards. He leaned in and breathed into her ear. He could feel her shudder slightly at his warm breath. He moved his lips to the spot on her neck behind her earlobe and nipped lightly. He stuck his tongue out and flecked the soft skin there causing her to moan again. Then he sucked on the spot he had been torturing making her moan louder this time as she tightened her grip around his neck, kneading her fingers into his shoulder blades.

Unable to stand his torture any longer, she grabbed his face and brought it to hers. She crushed her lips against his kissing him passionately. His other hand gripped onto her hip tightly. She took advantage of the dominance she had of the kiss and sucked on his tongue. He rewarded her with a moan from deep in his throat.

John and Trish were too lost in each other to hear the front door open. "Ahem…" Trish quickly pulled away from John, her face flushing a deep red color. They both turned their attention to the door where Randy stood with a cocky smile on his face. "You know that's what you have a bedroom for, right?"

"I mean, if you guys wanted some alone time you could have just told us. We would have gone to our apartment instead," Chrissy teased, popping her head around Randy's shoulder.

John scowled at them as he stood up. "I thought you were gonna be late?"

"We were. A new client was going to sign up and wanted a demo for a personal training session, but changed his mind," Randy explained.

"Lucky you," John answered sarcastically.

Randy chuckled. "How about we go get dinner going? I'm starving."

"Good idea babe. I'm starving too," Chrissy chimed in following him to the kitchen. "You guys can come and help too if you'd like… I mean… Unless you have something else to do," she teased as she disappeared in the kitchen.

John looked down at Trish and extended his hand to her. She placed her hand in his and he helped her up. "I guess we should go help them cook dinner."

Trish nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah… Let's go help them." Trish turned to walk to the kitchen but John stopped her. She turned back around to face him and he had a mischievous look on his face. "What?"

"I can think of something else I'd rather do," he said, waggling his eyebrows at her.

"We really sh…"

He cut her off placing a soft kiss on her lips. "I know…" He chuckled softly. "After all these years you still know how to drive me out of my absolutely crazy."


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Sorry for the delay in getting the next chapter out. I've been super busy the last few days, but I wanted to get this chapter out. Thank you for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are awesome! Here's the next chapter guy! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 13**

The girls tried to help Randy and John cook but Randy insisted they go relax by the pool and let them cook. Randy decided he wanted to make his famously mouth watering steaks on the grill with a side of vegetable, and Randy got John to make his diced ranch potatoes.

"So…?" Randy asked as he seasoned on side of the steak on the cutting board in front of him.

"So what?" John asked from where he said at the kitchen table peeling potatoes.

"You gonna tell me what's up with what I walked in on?"

"Is there really anything to explain? You saw it with your own eyes."

"Don't sass me Cena. You know what I mean," Randy shot back with a glare.

John chuckled. "Did I ever tell you know nosey you are?"

"All the time, so quit actin' surprised and quit stalling!"

"Honestly, I don't know what happened," John answered as he tossed the potato peeler into the sink.

Randy gave John a ridiculous look. "You don't know?"

"We were just sittin here waiting for you guys and I was silently fighting the urge to tell her how I feel… How I still feel… And I lost it. I lost my internal battle. I knew it was shitty timing with all the drama from the douchebag, but… I couldn't keep my big mouth shut. I told her I never stopped loving her… That I'm still _in_ love with her…"

"You did?" Randy asked, slightly shocked.

"Yeah, I did. I tried so hard to fight it… To not meddle in her life… To not fuck up her relationship… But, that didn't work. I ended up beating up her boyfriend and telling her I'm still in love with her right after that."

"No one ever said you were smooth, Cena," Randy teased with a chuckle.

John rolled his eyes in response. "I wasn't trying to be smooth; I was trying to keep my damn mouth shut."

"So how did your telling her you're still in love with her translate into you two sucking face on the couch?" Randy asked as he took the cellophane off of the second package of steak.

"I don't know. I just… Did it. I was spilling my guts and I just leaned in and kissed her."

"And she didn't push you away or slap the shit out of you?" Randy pressed.

"She was surprised at first I guess but she went with it. Then one thing lead to another and things got pretty… Hot." John shook his head with a sigh. "That girl could always get me going like no one else. She knows how to drive me absolutely crazy… I guess I got carried away."

"It didn't look like she minded," Randy added as he flipped the steak over on his cutting board. "So, where does that leave you two?"

"I don't know. We didn't get to that conversation…"

* * *

"Ummm… Care to explain that scene to me bitch?" Chrissy wasted no time jumping on the conversation as soon as the girls were out of ear range of the guys.

"I don't even know where to start…"

"Well figure it out! I wanna know!"

Trish sighed softy. "I guess it started when John and I went to dinner… And we kissed… And it escalated from there. Then when they came over after the Jason fiasco… We walked out front to give you two some privacy and he kissed me again… Not a kiss kiss, but a peck. He claims he could tell by my reaction that he still 'does something' to me. Then that leads us to today. We were sitting on the couch and he got me a drink… And the next thing I know… He's in front of me telling me how he feels about me… That he never stopped loving me… That he's still _in_ love with me. Then he kissed me…"

"Woah… Hold up! He said he's still _in_ love with you?" Trish nodded. "So what are you going to do about it?" Chrissy pressed.

"I don't know."

"What the hell do you mean you don't know?" Chrissy nearly shrieked.

"Just what I said… I don't know…" Trish repeated.

"You're joking, right?"

"No," Trish answered simply.

"How the hell don't you know? Take the ball and run with it! There's obviously still something there between the _both_ of you… Why the hell wouldn't you?"

Trish thought about her answer for a minute. "Haven't you ever heard the saying 'getting back together with your ex is like taking a shower and putting dirty underwear back on'?"

"I will literally drown you in this pool right now," Chrissy threatened.

Trish chuckled. "I'm kidding. I just… I don't know if I _want_ to get right back into another relationship. I mean, I literally _just_ broke up with Jason last night. I don't know that I really want to jump back into something else right now."

"So don't get 'into a relationship' right now. Just go with the flow and see what happens," Chrissy suggested.

"We'll see."

Just then Randy stepped out onto the deck. "Food is almost ready ladies. Steaks will be done in a few minutes," he bellowed.

Chrissy turned to face Randy. "Okay babe." She turned her attention back to Trish. "I'm serious. Just… Go with it."

"Chrissy you…"

Chrissy cut Trish off. "Let's go the table." Chrissy got up from the chair she was sunbathing on and trotted over to the patio. Trish got up a few minutes later and followed Chrissy to the patio.

The meal was great. Trish and Chrissy showered Randy and John on their cooking skills. Conversation flowed freely between everyone. After eating, Randy suggested a nap for himself and Chrissy, explaining they needed one since they worked earlier. Randy took the customary ribbing from John rather gracefully. He only shot John one dirty look and only threatened to punch him if he didn't shut up twice.

After Randy and Chrissy disappeared in the house, John turned his attention to Trish. "Wanna get in the pool with me?"

"Sure."

Trish got up and followed John to the pool. He walked to the shallow end of the pool and stepped on to the first step of the pool and stopped. He peeled off his shirt and tossed it in the direction of the chairs then continued his way into the pool. Trish stopped momentarily to appreciate his beauty.

"The water is nice," he told her.

Trish followed John into the pool. The water wasn't quite cold, but it wasn't hot either. It was a refreshing contrast to the Florida sun and heat. She quickly dunked herself in the pool to fully adjust herself to the water. She popped back up to see John just watching her.

"What?"

He shook his head back and forth. "Nothin."

Trish backed up to the steps of the pool and sat down. John splashed water on his arms, chest, and face before taking a seat on the concrete steps next to Trish. They sat in silence for awhile, just staring out into the water and enjoying the beautiful day.

"So where does this leave us?" John asked, finally breaking the silence.

Trish really didn't want to have this conversation with John right now, but she was all alone with him and there was no one to save her. She knew that she was going to have the conversation sooner or later; she just wished it was later rather than sooner.

"I don't know John."

"I know it's really shitty timing on my part… I tried to keep my mouth shut and I tried to not fuck up your relationship, I swear I did but I couldn't. I couldn't fight it. It was different when I couldn't talk to you… See you… But now I can and all these feelings… They hit me like a ton of bricks."

"It's just… I just got out of a relationship… Literally yesterday… And I don't know that I want to rush back into anything right now," she explained.

"So we don't have to rush. We can just take it day by day… See what happens."

Trish chuckled.

"What?" he asked.

"That's exactly what Chrissy said."

John grinned. "I like her idea."

"I knew you would," she said, chuckling again. "I don't know how well 'taking it slow' would go though…"

"I mean, technically we really don't _have_ to take it slow. You already know me and I already know you, and we have for a long time. It's not like we have to go through he 'getting to know each other' process," he told her with a lopsided smile. "But why wouldn't taking things slow work?"

"Look what 'taking it slow' has done for us this far. We kissed while I was still dating Jason and we made out pretty hot and heavy before Randy and Chrissy came home so far," she answered with a grin.

He chuckled this time. "Hey, I apologized for that kiss but you know you're my weakness… You know what you do to me… And you always did. I can't help myself."

He flashed his breathtaking smile and quickly leaned in and lightly brushed his lips against hers. He lingered there for a second, testing what her reaction would be. She smiled against his lips, put her hands on his chest and pushed him away gently.

"Damn, nothin?" he teased playfully.

She shook her head and grinned at him. "Nothin."

"Oh well… Ya can't blame a guy for tryin," he said with a shrug. "But seriously… Think about it… About us… I swear I'll be on my best behavior." He reached over and took her small hand in his. "I fucked shit up and I lost you once and I won't let that happen again. I'll take things at your pace and I won't push for more than you're willing to give me. I won't hurt you again Trish. I promise."

She shifted her position nervously. She looked up at him. His icy blue eyes were soft and sincere. Part of her screamed 'yes' while the other part screamed 'no stupid, are you trying to get hurt again'? His eyes stayed locked on hers as he waited for her answer. "Okay… I'll think about it. We'll see what happens."

A big smile spread across his lips. Inside he felt like doing cartwheels and back flips but he kept himself composed. "Good."


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: I'm so sorry for the delay in getting the next chapter out again! So here's a long chapter to make up for it! Thank you so much for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are awesome! Well, here's the next chapter ! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading guys! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

Trish decided to keep herself busy and productive on her time off. She spent all of her Tuesday catching up on the house work and laundry she had been meaning to do. By the time Tuesday evening came, she was spent. John did however call Trish and they made plans to see each other on Wednesday after John was done work. She hadn't seen or heard from Jason since they're last encounter, and she was happy about that. Things in Trish's life were finally starting to settle down and feel normal; she liked it.

At about 5:45 Trish decided to start getting ready since John said he'd be there at 7. She took her shower and shaved, then headed to her room to find something to wear. She began rummaging through her drawers and closet. After a few minutes of looking she realized John had never told her where they were going or what they doing, so she didn't know how to dress. She walked over to her bed and down. She reached over, grabbed her phone, and shot John a quick text.

_Hey, you never told me where we were going or what we were doing so I don't know how to dress for tonight? – T_

She tossed her phone next to her on the bed and patiently waited for John's response. A few seconds later her phone went off.

_Hmm… What do I want you to wear? Do you really want me to tell you what I want you to wear? ;) – J_

_What should I wear so that I'm dressed appropriately for tonight? Is that better? – T_

_Oh yes. This conversation keeps getting better and better! – J_

Trish chuckled to herself at John's answer.

_I should have known that's how you'd answer – T_

_I'm sure whatever you decide to wear will look gorgeous – J_

Trish rolled her eyes at his response.

_That's not much help Cena. I need to know how to dress. Am I dressing for ballroom dancing or sweats and a t-shirt? – T_

_Well you know it's definitely not ballroom dancing, I've got two left feet – J_

_Good answer… Still not helping… - T_

_I know. See you soon :-P – J_

Trish rolled her eyes again and sighed. She placed her phone back on her bedside table and walked back over to her closet. _He's so helpful… I guess some things don't change_, she thought to herself with a chuckle.

After trying on a few dresses, skirts, shorts, and disapproving of them all, she decided on a pair of white capri pants that buttoned down the fly that she paired with a turquoise camisole. The camisole was a two layer shirt, the top was a sheer fabric and the layer underneath was solid. The top of the shirt fit snug to her chest and the sheer layer flowed freely beneath her bust. She thought about putting her hair up, but remembered John liked her hair down and decided against it. She swept a shimmery soft silver eye shadow over both of her eyelids, and then topped it off with back eyeliner and mascara. She took a long look in the mirror, trying to decide if she liked what she saw.

"Trish… John is here."

Chrissy's voice calling to her from the living room snapped her out of her internal debate. She glanced at the clock. It read 6:50. She quickly went to her closet and pulled out a pair of white flats and slid them on. She grabbed her phone and hurried down the hall. She turned into the living room and her stomach immediately flooded with butterflies. She took a moment to take him in silently as he talked to Chrissy. He was wearing a pair of jean shorts and a blue polo shirt. The color of his shirt made his icy blue eyes appear even lighter than they normally were. _He looks so… So good_, she thought to herself.

John caught a glimpse of her out the corner of his eye and turned around to see her. A big smile spread across his lips. "Hey." He walked across the room and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in for a hug.

She smiled back at him. "Hey."

"I didn't mean to rush you; did you need more time to finish getting ready?"

"Oh no, I was ready. I'm just not used to a guy being on time. Jason was…" Trish realized what she was saying and stopped talking, diverting her eyes away from his.

John hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head up to look at him. "I'm not Jason."

"I know. I'm sorry. I should…"

"It's okay," he cut her off. "How about we get goin'?" Trish nodded and followed John to the door.

"See you guys later," Chrissy called from the kitchen.

"Bye," they called back to Chrissy as they headed out the door.

* * *

John took Trish to a casual dinner at Bern's Steak House. Conversation between them flowed freely. It almost felt like old times. Trish decided she was going to get John back for paying the bill sneakily. After dinner Trish excused herself from the table to go to the ladies room. On her way, she pulled their server aside and paid the bill without John knowing and then instructed the server to bring the receipt to the table while she was in the bathroom.

"I can't believe you did that," John complained as they walked back to his car.

"Ha! Gotcha back for the last time we went to dinner!"

John scoffed as he reached over to open the door for her. "Oh you think that's funny do you?"

"I do," Trish grinned back at him.

"Well I don't but that's okay. You can have your laugh now. There will be more dinners to pay for and I'll just get you back then," he said nonchalantly and quickly closed the door before she could respond.

"Challenge accepted," she answered with a laugh.

John placed his key in the ignition then turned to Trish. "So, what do you wanna do now?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do?"

"Ummm," John paused for a minute to think. "I don't know. We can go mini golfing, to the movies, the beach, a walk… We could go back to your place? We can go back to my house and swim, sit on the patio and talk, put in a DVD?"

"That sounds good."

John chuckled. "That's not any help."

"I know," Trish answered with a grin.

"Fine. I'll decide." John turned the key and started the car.

About 30 minutes later John pulled up out front of the house he and Randy shared. He parked and turned off the car then turned to Trish. "You didn't decide so I decided we'd go back to my house and watch a movie."

John got out and walked around the car to the passenger's side door. He opened it for Trish and extended his hand to help her out. When she was out, he closed the car door and locked the doors. He took advantage of her hand being in his and interlaced his fingers with his as he led her to the front door. When he got to the door, he unlocked it and pushed it open, and proceeded inside with her tagging along behind.

As John led Trish through the foyer, he could hear the TV in the living room. What the hell his Randy doing home? _I thought he said he was going out with Chrissy tonight_, John thought to himself. When John walked into the living room he saw Mike stretched out on the couch, half asleep.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing here?" John asked surprised.

Mike quickly snapped awake and sat up on the couch. "Oh hey." Mike rubbed the sleep from his eyes and yawned. "Maryse and I got into a fight. She kicked me out of the house and I came and crashed here."

"Did Randy let you in?" John questioned.

"Randy wasn't here when I got her. I pushed open the kitchen window and crawled in like I always do."

"I'm going to have to talk to Randy about getting those bars on the windows," John said shaking his head. "We… Uh… We came back here to watch a movie."

Mike yawned again as he laid back down on the couch. "That's cool. Go right ahead."

John's jaw tightened slightly with agitation. "Alone…"

"You're fine. Watch whatever you'd like. You won't even… Know… I'm… Here…" Mike answered sleepily.

John turned to Trish. "Well, it looks like we'll have to watch a movie in my room."

"If I didn't know you better Cena, I'd say you set this up… Oh wait… I do know you…"

John gasped and faked a look of shock. "What? Me?"

Trish chuckled and lightly punched him in the ribs with the hand he still held his. "Yes you."

"No seriously. I didn't plan this but if you want to leave, I'll take you home," he answered with a pout.

Trish could feel the butterflies fluttering around in her stomach. She knew she had no chance of resisting him. "No, I don't want to leave."

He smiled at her. "Good." He turned to face the steps and nodded his head gesturing for her to follow him.

He led her up the steps and down the hallway to his room. He opened the door and slid his hand up the wall until he found the light switch and turned on the light. He gestured for her to proceed in. She walked in and looked around. His room was very neat. His bed looked large and comfortable. It had a black comforter on it and matching sheets. There were two bedside tables, one on each side of the bed and one had a lamp on top of it. He had a long dresser against the wall that started under the light switch and it ran about halfway down the wall with a mirror on top. He had a flat screen TV mounted to the wall directly across from his bed.

"You can sit down if you want," John offered as he kicked his shoes off. After he took his shoes off, he walked over to the lamp next to his bed and turned it on. He then walked back to the switch on the wall, turned it off, and then walked back to his bed and sat down. "So are you gonna stand there all night?"

He reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her close to him. He released her hand and placed both of his hands on her hips, giving her one more tug and bringing her just a step closer to him. He looked up at her and smiled.

"Thank you," he told her softly.

"Thank you?" she repeated, confused.

"Yes… Thank you."

"For what?" she asked, still confused.

"Thank you for giving me chance to…" he trailed off, searching for the right words to say. "… to make a second impression. I know my first one wasn't so great."

She chuckled. "It was at first… It's the end that wasn't so great."

John frowned. "I know… I can't even tell you how many times I've thought about it… Kicked myself for it… Seen your face that day in the hallway… Regretted it…" he said nearly whispering the last part, diverting his eyes from hers.

"John… That was a long time ago. We were both young and dumb then." He didn't answer, he just scoffed. She took her small hands and placed them on either side of his face and tilted his head up to look at her. "That was then…"

He smiled up at her causing him to smile back at him. He slowly leaned in and placed a soft kiss on her lips. He lingered there, running his tongue along her bottom lip, trying to test the waters. Her hips felt like they were on fire where his hands were and her lips tingled from his tongue. The sensations he was creating overwhelmed her. Her body went on autopilot and her lips parted for him. He slid his tongue into her mouth, wrestling with hers for dominance. She finally got the better of him and sucked gently on his tongue. He tightened his grip on her hips. He couldn't stop himself from wondering if she remembered how much that drove him crazy.

With a grunt he stood up, not breaking their kiss and picked her up off her feet. She mindlessly wrapped her legs around his waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck and their tongues continued their dance. He shifted her weight to one arm and used his free arm to steady himself as he lowered her to the bed. He broke their kiss and quickly refocused his attention to her neck. He gently nipped at her soft flesh causing her to shudder under him. He smiled into her neck at her response. He decided to continue his torture on her neck and traced a line with his tongue from the base of her neck up her favorite spot behind her ear. When he reached his destination he sucked gently at first causing a soft moan to escape her lips.

"Mmmm," he murmured. "You still like that?"

"Mhmm," was all she could muster as she nodded her head.

He returned his attention her neck and sucked on the same spot, harder this time causing her hips to buck towards him. Her entire body now felt like it was on fire; her every nerve ending was tingling from head to toe. She couldn't stop herself from digging her nails into his back as he continued his assault on her neck; nipping, sucking and kissing. He slightly shifted his weight on top of her so he could gain better access to her ear. She could now fully feel the effects this was having on him now pressing against her belly.

She slid her hands under his shirt and ran her hands up his back. She could feel his muscles tensing and flexing under her fingers as he moved on top of her. John finally became aware of the situation and pulled his lips away from her neck. He rolled off of her with a sigh, interlacing his fingers as he put his arms under his head and stared up at the ceiling. Trish turned her head to look at him, confused by his actions.

"Damn it woman!" he playfully scolded with a half smile.

"Did I do something wrong?"

He rolled over to his side to face her. "Do something wrong?" he repeated with a chuckle. "No, you definitely didn't so anything wrong."

"So?..." she trailed off.

"I'm trying to take things… slow. To see what happens, like we discussed. It's just a little more difficult than I expected. I really just want to throw you back down on my bed and have my way with you to be honest."

She giggled at his honesty. "Well, since we're being honest… I _want_ you to throw me back down on your bed and have your way with me."

He rolled over to his back, grabbed a pillow, placed it over his face, and groaned loudly into it. "You're really not making this any easier on me!"

"I know," she answered with a grin as she pulled the pillow away from his face. "So how about we watch that movie then?"

* * *

When the movie was over, John reluctantly took Trish home. He wanted her to stay with him all night, but he knew that wasn't a good idea right now. After getting to her apartment, he walked her to the door and gave her a soft peck on the lips before he left. He told her he would let her know when he got home and she closed the front door and locked it. She felt like she was walking on air and entirely too amped up to go to sleep. She decided to turn the TV on in the living room and try to wind down. About ten minutes later, she heard the doorbell ring. She smiled to herself as she got up to answer the door.

She pulled the door with a big smile. Her smile quickly faded when she saw who was on the other side of her door. Her mouth hung slightly open, still in shock.

"Jason…"


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: Thank you so much for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are amazing as always! I appreciate them soooo much! Here is the next chapter! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you so much for reading guys! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 15**

"Wait! Don't close the door! Please!" Jason pleaded.

Trish debated slamming the door in his face, but the look on his face… So broken and defeated… Pulled on her heart strings. "What the hell are you doing here?" Trish demanded. Seeing Jason at her front door scared the hell out of her, but she didn't want him to know she was scared.

"I just want to talk to you."

"There isn't anything to say, so you can just leave," she answered sternly.

"Please baby. I… I was wrong… I fucked up… I'm so sorry."

"What?"

"My life has been a wreck without you. You're all I've been thinking about. Where you are, what you're doing… I'm not eating or sleeping… I'm drinking like a fish… I'm getting high all the time just to numb the pain of not having you. I miss you so much. It feels like someone ripped my heart out. I feel like I'm missing a piece of my heart, of my soul. I was wrong for what I did and I should have never let you go," Jason explained. "I love you and I don't want to be without you. I can't be without you."

"You weren't with me all that often to begin with Jason, especially towards the end of our relationship. And if you really loved me, you wouldn't have put me though half of the shit you put me through. Maybe you should have realized what you had when you had it. It's too little too late now," she answered flatly.

"Baby, you don't understand. Not seeing you or talking to you… Hearing you tell me that it's over… It made me realize how much I really do love you. You can't tell me that after all the years we spent together; you could just turn off your feelings for me like a light switch. I know somewhere in that heart of yours, you still care about me and love me like I care about and love you. You're my soul mate. We were made for each other."

"Jay…"

Jason cut her off. "I knew you did. I knew you still cared about me."

"I didn't say…"

"You just called me Jay… You called me Jason when you were mad at me or we were fighting, but you called me Jay when things were good… When you loved me… When you were in love with me."

Trish shook her head. "It doesn't change things…" she answered softly.

"Please Trish… I need you in my life… I can't loose you," he pleaded.

Trish could hear her phone ringing in the living room. "Jay, you need to leave."

"Please let me in baby, please."

"No and I said I have to go…" she answered, glancing towards the living room.

"Why? Have to go running to answer your phone? You never ran to answer when I called you. It must be your little boy toy!" Jason spat, the venom growing in his voice, his demeanor shifting quickly. "I know you've been spending a lot of time with him since you dumped me! My suspicions must have been correct, you must have been sleeping with him while you were supposed to be with me!" he shouted angrily. "It's funny how you dump me and get right with him. You didn't even need any time to get over me! I guess you wouldn't though, would you? You're nothing without me, you little slut!"

Trish could feel her anxiety with the situation begin to rise. Her legs felt like jello and her hands began to tremble. She could hear her phone cycle through one call then a brief silence and begin to ring again. She knew it was John and she had to hurry and answer before he got worried.

"Really Jason? You really want to try and throw around 'being faithful'? You weren't faithful to _me_! Remember? And how the hell do you know who I've been hanging out with?" she demanded, trying to put her best brave face on.

"Don't worry about how I know! I know you were with him tonight! I know he took you to dinner and I know he just dropped you off!"

"You don't worry about what I do or who I do what with, we aren't together anymore. And you need to leave before I call the cops," Trish warned.

Jason took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. "Baby, I'm sorry. I let my anger get to me. I'm sorry for what I said. I shouldn't have talked to you like that. I'm trying to change… I'm trying to be better. I love you and you deserve better than I was. Please just give me a chance to prove to you I changed. Please let me show you I can be that man you deserved all along."

"How many times have you told me that before?"

Jason lunged at her, hitting the screen door hard with his fist, causing her to jump back in surprise. He gritted his teeth and exhaled loudly. "I said I'm _trying_ to change for you… So I don't lose you."

"Leave Jason."

"You know I'll never let it happen! I'll never let him have you! I'll never let you be with him! You mark my words, bitch! You're mine, you'll never be with anyone else but me and I'll make sure of it!"

Trish heart felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest. She hesitated a moment, frozen in fear as she listened to his tirade but the sound of her phone ringing for a third time snapped her out of her thoughts. "I… I have to go…" she told him as she quickly closed the door, making sure to lock it, then quickly ran to the living room and picked up her phone. She just missed John's last call. Before she could call him back, her phone started to ring again in her hand. "Hello?"

"Hey," John's voice came through the receiver. "I started to get worried you were mad at me or something."

"N… No. I'm not mad at you."

"Trish, what's wrong?" John could tell by the tone of her voice she was frazzled.

"Nothing. I'm… I'm fine."

_"_Don't lie to me," John pressed. After a few seconds, John could hear banging and a faint yelling in the background. "Trish, what's going on?" John demanded. There was a long pause on the other end of the phone. "Trish? Answer me. What's going on?"

"It's Jason…"

"What about Jason?" John asked alarmed.

"Jason showed up," she answered softly.

"He what?"

There was a brief pause on her side. "He… He showed up. He's here."

"Did you let him in?" John pressed.

"No. He's outside. I locked the door."

_"_I'm on my way," he answered.

"N… No… It's okay. I'm fine," she stammered, but there was no answer at the other end of the line. She looked at the screen of her phone, _Call Lost_, was what it read.

Trish sat silently in the living room, curled up in a little ball on the floor. The banging and yelling stopped, but she was still too scared to go to the door to check to see if Jason was gone or not. What seemed like forever had passed when there was a loud bang at the front door, causing her to jump at the sound. She sat on the floor, frozen in fear.

"Trish, it's me John. Open up," he called to her from the other side.

She got up and nearly ran to the door, quickly unlocking it, and pulled it open. John pulled open the screen door and walked in. She practically jumped into his arms the moment he was through the threshold. She wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him tightly. He wrapped one arm around her waist and used his free arm to close the door and lock it behind him. After he was sure the door was locked to his satisfaction, he turned his attention to the tiny woman in his arms. She was still shaking like a leaf. He wrapped his other arm around her and squeezed her tightly.

"It's okay. Relax. I'm here now," he whispered into her hair as he rubbed her back, trying to soothe her.

"You… You didn't have to… You didn't have to come. I'm fine," she stammered, her face still buried in his chest.

He chuckled softly. "Yeah, I can see that."

"I said you didn't _have_ to come, I never said I wasn't happy you did."

"Of course I came. I could tell by the sound of your voice there was something wrong, there was no way in hell I wasn't coming to make sure you were okay," he answered with a smile. "So, are we gonna stand here at the front of the door all night" he joked, leaning back slightly to look at her. "How about we get you in bed so you can relax? I'll stay for awhile… Until you fall asleep."

"Please don't leave," she blurted out.

"Are you sure you really want me to stay?" he questioned.

She nodded.

"Okay if you're sure. Let me just unlock the screen door for Randy and Chrissy for when they decide to come home." John turned around, unlocked the door, pulled it open, unlocked the screen door, closed the door, and locked it again. "It's unlocked now. They'll be able to get in, although it would be kinda funny to lock them out. Randy would be so pissed."

Trish reached passed him and turned off the light in the foyer. She took him by the hand and led him into the living room, stopping to pick up the remote and turned the TV off. She turned the light in the living room off and led him down the hallway to her bedroom. She felt her way in the darkness over to her bed, then up her bed until she got to the lamp on her bedside table and turned it on. After turning the light on, she sat down on the bed and looked over at John who was still standing in the doorway.

"Are you gonna come in?" she asked with a grin.

"Are you sure you want me to stay?"

"I want you to stay, but it almost sounds like you don't want to?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I _want_ to stay. It's just… This just kinda goes against our whole 'taking it slow' philosophy, doesn't it?"

"I asked you to stay with me, I didn't say anything about us having sex Cena," she answered.

John pushed off the doorway where he was leaning with a chuckle and closed the door to Trish's room behind him. "Can't blame me for trying," he answered with a shrug as he walked around to the other side of the bed and sat down.

"I'm gonna go get ready for bed," she said as she got up off the bed.

John watched as she disappeared out of the room. He kicked his shoes off and then pulled the socks off of his feet. He stood up and pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor. He then unhooked his belt and let his shorts slide down his legs. _Hope she doesn't mind me sleeping in my boxers… Oh well… It's not like it's something she's never seen before,_ he thought to himself as he crawled back into bed. He leaned up for a second, fluffing up the pillows to his liking, and then laid back down.

After a few seconds, the bedroom door opened and Trish walked back in. John laid in bed, silently admiring her. He scanned his eyes up and down her slender body. She was wearing a pair of black boy shorts underwear and a matching black spaghetti strapped tank top. She brushed her hair out and left it down. He couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his lips.

"Something wrong?" she asked with a grin, amused by the look on his face.

"I… Uhh…" He cleared his throat. "No. Nothing is wrong at all."

She closed the door, walked over to the bed, and crawled in next to him. "Are you ready to go to sleep or do you wanna watch TV?"

"It doesn't matter to me. I'm perfectly content with just being here with you."

Trish turned the TV on and set the timer to turn off in an hour and a half. She reached over and placed the remote on the table next to her bed, then wiggled a little, trying to find a comfortable position to go to sleep in. She leaned back to rest her head on her pillow when John reached over and grabbed a hold of her.

"Lay with me please?" he asked as he pulled her to his chest.

She obliged his request and scooted herself closer to him, laying her head on his chest and settling herself into a comfortable position. He slid one arm under his head and slid his other arm around her and squeezed her tight, earning a smile from her.

"Mmmm… This right here… This is perfect," he said with a yawn. "Absolutely perfect."


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: Sorry for yet another long delay in getting a chapter out again. Thank you so much for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are amazing as always! Here is the next chapter! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading guys! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 16**

The alarm on John's phone went off at 7:15am. He groggily reached over, grabbed his phone, and turned off the alarm. He rolled back over, wrapped his arm tightly around Trish, and went right back to sleep. Trish laid there for a few minutes waiting to see if John was awake or not. When she heard the soft snoring coming from him, she knew he definitely wasn't awake. She smiled to herself as she listened to his soft snoring. She knew she had to make sure he got up because he had to be to work soon, but she really didn't want to wake him. If she had her way, she'd lay there in his arms until he woke up on his own accord.

After cherishing a few more minutes in his arms she decided it was time to wake him up. She wiggled a little bit in his arms, and he loosened his grip on her. She rolled over to face him and took a few minutes to take in his beauty. She leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips and then waited for a response from him. Receiving no response, she leaned in and kissed his lips again. This time she traced his lips with her tongue and he parted his lips for her. She still wasn't quite sure if he was awake or not so she decided to take his bottom lip into her mouth and suck on it softly.

This drove him wild and he couldn't pretend to be sleeping anymore. With a low groan he quickly rolled over on top of her, dipping his head down to nibble and suck on her neck. He used one of his legs to push her legs open a little farther for him so he could fit comfortably between her legs. She could feel the full effect she had on him pressing hard up against her panties. He traced his way up her jaw line with a line of wet kisses until he got to her lips. Her lips were already parted and waiting for him. He eagerly covered her lips with his and kissed her passionately.

John broke the kiss and looked down at her. She was smiling up at him. "Good morning beautiful."

"Mmmm… Good morning."

John glanced over at the clock on her bedside table and shook his head. He rolled off of her and groaned loudly.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"The things you do to me… It's just not fair… Not fair at all…" he answered shaking his head again.

"The things _I_ do to _you_? What about the things _you_ do to _me_? _You_ started this morning not _me_," she retorted.

"_I_ started? Nice try. _You_ started! _You_ were the on who decided to suck on my lip knowing full well what that does to me and now _I_ have to walk around with this," John answered, pointing to his fully erect member, "not _you_."

"You had your part in this and maybe you should have thought about how much time there was before you decided to start," she answered with a grin. "Besides, it's not like I'm walking away from this unscathed."

John rolled to his side to face her. "How so?" he asked skeptically.

"_I'm_ going to be thinking about this morning all day now thanks to _you_."

A smile began to slowly creep across his lips. "All day, huh?"

"Yes," she answered.

"Well I can fix that for you… Or better yet, we can fix our problem for each other?"

Trish twisted to look at the clock. "We don't have time. You have to be to work at eight o'clock."

John didn't answer so Trish turned to look at John. When she saw him he had the most ridiculous look on his face.

"What?" she asked.

"I'm surprised…"

"You're surprised by what?" she pressed.

"You actually thought about it…" he answered with a grin.

Trish opened her mouth to respond, but closed it again quickly knowing she was busted.

"I mean, we've been doing the 'taking it slow' thing… And I know how you are about the whole sex thing…" John explained.

"It's… Well… It's different between us. We've known each other for a long time… We've been together… We've been together physically… And I hate to admit it, but you still get me going like no one else ever has."

John couldn't help the Cheshire cat like grin that spread across his lips. "Like no one else ever has?" he repeated.

Trish quickly leaned in and grabbed John's face, pulling him to her. She covered his lips with hers. She traced his bottom lip with her tongue, seeking entrance to his mouth. His lips happily obliged and parted for her. She slid her tongue into his mouth, twisting with his. She broke the kiss for a moment and looked at him with her big blue eyes. He could do nothing but stare back at her, entranced by her. She leaned in one more time, this time she went for his neck. He moaned softly in response to the feel of her lips on his skin. She kissed the soft skin on his neck, gently at first, and then nipped a little harder. He moaned again in response to her, this time louder, as he glided his hand up her stomach and cupped her breast in his hand. He used his thumb to rub small circles around her nipple. She shuddered at his touch.

He slid his other arm under her tiny frame and scooted her closer to him. Still not satisfied with her closeness, he released her breast and slid his other arm under her and pulled her on top of him so that she was straddling him. He squeezed her ass as he ground her center into his fully erect member, wanting her to feel exactly what she was doing to him. She moaned softly in his ear feeling him against her. She refocused her attention from his neck and captured his lips, her tongue tangling with his again passionately. She took his bottom lip into her mouth again and sucked on it. With a deep moan John reached for the hem of Trish's shirt, but she swatted his hands away and hopped off of him quickly. He blinked hard as he stared at her, confused by what just happened.

An evil grin spread across her face. "You had better hurry up and get ready before you're late for work," she teased as she sauntered out of the room, wagging her hips exaggeratedly.

"Not fair!" he growled, rolling over and burying his face into a pillow. "Not fair at all!"

Trish went into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face in a failed attempt to cool herself down. She sat down on the cool tile floor. She knew if she went back into her bedroom right now there was no way John was going to make it to work on time, if at all. When she felt in control of herself she walked back into her bedroom. John was now dressed and sitting on the end of her bed, tying his shoes. He looked up at her with a scowl when he heard the door open.

"You suck… That's all I have to say… You suck."

She giggled at him. "Oh stop it."

"Walk me out?" he asked as he stood up.

She nodded and followed him out of her room and to the front door. He unlocked the door and pulled it open. He unlocked he screen and turned back around to face her. He reached out, grabbed her hands, and pulled her to him. When she was close enough, he snaked his arms around her and cupped his hands under her ass, giving it a squeeze. He pressed her tightly to his strong body. She placed both hands on his chest, leaned up on her tippy toes, and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"Do you really think I'm going to be satisfied with that after this morning?" he asked with a chuckle. He dipped his head down and covered her lips with his, kissing her passionately. He broke off the kiss and looked at her with a smile. "See you later," he told her as he turned and headed to his car.

She stood in the doorway until he was in his car and gone from view. When he was out of sight, she closed the door and locked it. She felt like she was walking on air. She silently walked back to her room with the most ridiculous looking smile on her face. When she got into her room, she crawled back into bed and laid down. She scooted over further and rested her head on the pillows John was sleeping on. A smile spread across her lips; she could still smell his scent and she breathed in deeply. After a few minutes of laying in her bed, her phone went off signaling she had a text message. She rolled over and picked up her phone off the bedside table and tapped the screen.

_I just want you to know you made it VERY difficult for me to leave this morning. I miss you already and I hope I gave you something to make you think about me ALL day – J_

Trish smiled as she read his message.

_Good… That means my evil plan worked :) Were you late? – T_

_Three minutes, no big deal. Evil plan? So you were planning this to me? – J_

_LOL no I didn't plan any of it – T_

_I think you did. I think you planned on making me fall in love with you all over again. It felt like old times again Trish – J_

Trish read John's last message over and over again. Immediately her anxiety began to rise. She knew where this conversation was going and she really didn't want to have this conversation right now. She didn't want to talk about jumping back into a relationship with John, especially with Jason's crazy antics still going on. She didn't want to drag John into that.

_Yeah, I guess it did – T_

_It felt almost like we were never apart – J_

_I guess it did - T_

_Then why the hell are we taking it slow? I'm already all yours. There's no one else I want. I only want you. I want you… All of you… Entirely… To me just mine – J_

_I just don't think that's a good idea right now with me just getting out of one relationship and especially with the shit Jason's been pulling. It's not fair to drag you into that mess – T_

_Fuck Jason. I don't care about him and I'm sure as hell not afraid of him. I want to be with you Trish and I'm prepared to do whatever I have to in order to make that happen – J_

Trish sat in silence reading John's last message over and over to herself. She didn't know how to respond. She knew her feelings were still very much alive for John. There was no way she could deny it, but she just didn't feel like it was fair to John to drag him into the mess she was in with Jason. Jason was being very irrational. She thought it would be better to protect John from Jason by trying to keep her distance from him, at least until things with him blew over. After a few seconds later her phone went off again in her hand.

_Trish, I'm in this for the long haul. I fucked up once already and let you get away once already. I'm not going to do that again. Jason isn't going to scare me away. I'm not going away Trish. I love you. I loved you then and I love you now – J_


	17. Chapter 17

**AN: WOW! I've really been slacking with the updates. I'm sooooo sorry guys! I've had some health issues lately, but I seem to be doing better now, so I'll try to update more regularly. Here's a short chapter to hold you guys over. I'm going to work on the next chapter now. Thank you so much for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, TrishOrton, and Trishrocks! You guys are absolutely amazing as always! Here is the next chapter! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading guys! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 17**

It was now Friday, and Trish had little contact with John. He called and texted her many times, but she fed him lame excuse after lame excuse as to why she couldn't see him or why she hadn't answered. She knew she wouldn't be able to avoid him forever, and she knew the truth of the matter was she didn't want to. She was just trying to buy herself a little bit of time to figure things out. One part of her knew her feelings were still very much there for John and spending time with him was only making them grow stronger. The other half of her felt like it was unfair to bring John into her life right now with the problems that were going on with Jason.

Trish decided to sit on the balcony of the apartment and read a book. She hoped the fresh air would help take her mind off things for awhile. It was a bright, sunny, beautiful day. It wasn't too hot out, and she wanted to enjoy the weather. She placed her glass of lemonade and cell phone on the table next to her and curled up on the chair. Settling back into the chair she cracked open her book to begin reading.

Two chapters into her book, her phone went off. She leaned forward to see who was calling, _Jason_ flashed across her screen. She rolled her eyes and settled back into a comfortable position, letting the call go to voicemail. Seconds later, her phone started ringing again. _Ugh really? What the hell could he possibly want?_ She thought to herself. _Oh well, I don't really care, _and went back to reading her book. Three hours and a finished book later, she finally looked up. The sun was setting. She stood up and leaned against the railing of the balcony, taking in the gorgeous sunset.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

Trish gasped and jumped, startled, as she turned around.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," John said with a soft chuckle as he stepped onto the balcony.

"Jesus! You scared the shit outta me! I didn't know you were here."

"I know. I figured I'd have a better chance of seeing you if I just showed up. I've been kinda striking out lately with the pre-planned visits," he answered with a weak smile. "I actually started to think you were avoiding me."

Trish didn't say anything, she just sighed.

John continued over to the railing and rested his arms against it as he stared off into the distance next to her. "If you didn't want to see me, you could have just told me that… I would have been able to accept that easier…"

"John I…"

"… You didn't have to lie" he said softly, cutting her off.

Trish shook her head. "I didn't lie… It's just…" she began. "John you already know how I feel…"

"No I don't know how you feel. You won't tell me. 'I want to take things slow' is all I'm able to get from you," he answered. His icy blue eyes were soft with emotion as he reached over and took her hand in his. A shock of electricity flowed through her with his touch. His eyes were almost pleading with her.

"It's not that I don't want to see you, John…" she began, as her stomach twisted in knots.

"Then what is it?"

She didn't answer, just shook her head, blinking slowly.

"Nothing?" he pressed. He paused, giving her a moment to answer. After a brief period of silence, John sighed. "It's cool… I get it now…" He turned and headed back towards the patio door.

A rush of anxiety rolled through Trish. She quickly scrambled through her thoughts in an attempt to come up with something but her brain and her lips failed her. John nodded silently at her as he walked through the patio doors and towards the front door. She watched as John made his way to the front door. She quickly ran after him, just catching up to him as he walked out the front door of her apartment.

"John, wait!" she called after him.

"Nah, it's cool. I'll see ya around I guess," he called back to her with an icy coldness in his voice as he slid into his car.

"John!" she called after him again.

He said nothing. He didn't turn around, just turned on his car and sped away. A familiar crushing pain hit her in the chest, taking her breath away. Her eyes began to sting and she could feel the warm wetness of tears stream down her cheeks. _What did I do? I fucked everything up_, she thought to herself. She stood outside her front door, watching him drive away until she could no long see his car.

* * *

"I'm home!" Chrissy bellowed from the front door.

She listened for a moment, waiting for a response. She scrunched her face up in confusion. She could hear the sound of the TV coming from the living room. She followed the sound of the TV and saw Trish was sitting on the couch.

"Couldn't answer me?" Chrissy joked, flopping down on the couch next to Trish. She looked at her friend and could see her eyes were puffy and red from crying. "What's wrong?"

Tears immediately began to well up in Trish's eyes again. "I'm a fuck up! I ruined everything!"

Chrissy leaned over and wrapped her arms around her friend, rubbing her back soothingly. "You're not a fuck up. Tell me what happened?"

"John…"

"What about John?" Chrissy pressed.

"He… He showed up today… He wanted to know why I'd been avoiding him… He tried to get me to open up about my feelings for him… And… I… I didn't say anything…" she explained as the tears flowed freely down her cheeks.

Chrissy took Trish by her shoulders and shook her softly. "You're not a fuck up. Stop saying that."

Trish wiped the tears from her eyes and shook her head silently.

"You also have to remember that this is John _not_ Jason. They're _not_ the same people. You can't… No, you don't _need_ to keep your feelings all bottled up anymore. John cares about what you feel, what you think, and what you want. John wants to know what and how you feel. I know you're so used to keeping all your feelings and thoughts bottled up because Jason never cared or would let you express them, but it's not Jason hun… It's John. Knowing what you're thinking, how you're feeling, what you want… That's so very important to John. Your guard is so high because of that asshole that you won't let anyone in. Even someone who's trying to hard to show you that you can let that guard down… That he won't ever hurt you like Jason did."

Trish nodded again. "I know he wouldn't…"

"So what the hell are you so scared of? You've known John for a long time. You already know him so well. _Stop_ being so bullheaded and _stop_ fighting him! There's something there between you two still. It's absolutely completely 100% obvious…"

"It's obvious?" Trish asked, cutting her friend off.

Chrissy's features scrunched up into a frown. "Yes it's obvious! Anyone with two eyes… Hell… Anyone with one eye could see it!"

Trish chuckled softly. "I don't…"

"Oh shut the hell up!" Chrissy shrieked, cutting her friend off. "You can see that spark in your eyes when you look at him… When you're around him… The spark in his eye… It's there and it's obvious. "

Trish shrugged.

"Do you still have feelings for him? Honestly?"

Trish sat in silent thought for a moment.

"Well?" Chrissy pressed.

"Yes… I do."

Chrissy grinned from ear to ear. "FINALLY!"

Trish giggled at her friend's outburst.

"I'm not the one you need to be telling this to… Although I'm thrilled you finally came clean about what everyone else has already known you need to talk to John."

"I know…"

"So do it!" Chrissy ordered as she sprung up off the couch and disappeared down the hallway towards her bedroom. "Oh and I'll find out if you didn't! I have my ways and I will hurt you if you don't!"

Trish smiled to herself at her friends threats. She sat there for a minute, thinking about her next move. _Hmm… What do I do? Do I call him? Do I text him? Show up at his house?_ Her mind raced with her thoughts. _What if he won't answer the phone? What if he won't answer the door when I get there? _After a few more minutes of internal debate she reached forward and grabbed her phone. She tapped the home screen and then on the messages envelope. She scrolled down her conversation list until she saw his name. She clicked on his name, opening their last conversation. She sat there for a few minutes, staring at her screen, trying to pull her thoughts together and what to say.

_Hey. Can we talk? – T_

She put her phone down on the coffee table, turned on the TV, and waited for his answer.

* * *

"Hey… Wake up."

Trish sat up and groggily wiped the sleep from her eyes. She stretched as she yawned.

"Why did you sleep out here?"

"I didn't mean to. I texted John and the next thing I knew…" Trish trailed off. "Shit! John!" She frantically looked for her phone, throwing one of the couch pillows out of her way to retrieve it. She quickly turned on her phone, checking for John's message. Her face deflated when she looked at her phone. She tossed her phone on the coffee table and sat back down on the couch.

"What's wrong?" Chrissy asked.

"He didn't answer. I guess I can't blame him though…"

"Well maybe…"

"I'm going to go get dressed and take a run… I need to clear my head," Trish answered, cutting her friend off.

"Want me to get dressed and come with you?" Chrissy offered.

"No thanks. I think I need to be alone right now."

"Okay… Why don't you text me on your way back and I'll make us some breakfast?"

Trish shook her head. "No thanks. I'm not really hungry. I'll see you later."


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: As promised, I'm keeping up with the updating of the story! Being away from writing really made me realize how much I missed it and enjoy it. Thank you so much for the reviews MyTimeIsNow, TheRealChamps, and TrishOrton! You guys are absolutely amazing as always! Here is the next chapter! Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Thank you for reading guys! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Chapter 18**

About two hours and a drenching sweat later, Trish finally returned to her apartment. She could hear the TV in the living room. "I'm back," she called out, kicking her sneakers off.

"I'm in the living room." Chrissy called back. "I just made your favorite, nachos! Come in here and help me eat them.

Trish smiled slightly as she headed into the living room. Chrissy smiled widely as she gestured towards the table with the heaping tray of nachos and the two tall glasses of Coke waiting for her. She didn't have the heart to tell Chrissy she wasn't hungry. She knew she was just trying to do her best to make her feel better just like any best friend would.

"Come, come," Chrissy directed, patting the couch cushion next to her.

"I thought you said you were making breakfast?" Trish teased.

Chrissy rolled her eyes. "It's 11:45! That's close enough to eat lunch."

"I should probably shower first. I'm all stinky and drenched in sweat."

Chrissy's face scrunched up into a frown. "I don't want to hear your excuses. It's not the first time I've had to smell your smelly ass and it won't be the last, so sit your ass down and eat."

Trish chuckled softly and sat down as she was instructed. She reached forward and grabbed her glass of soda and chugged down half of it. It tasted so good since she was so thirsty after her run.

"Thirsty?" Chrissy teased through a mouth full of nachos.

Trish nodded as she put her glass back down and reached for a chip and dipped it in sour cream before popping it into her mouth. "They're good Chrissy."

"Thanks," Chrissy answered with a smile.

After a few more moments of eating in silence, Chrissy finally cleared her throat. "So?"

"So what?" Trish answered before taking a sip of her Coke.

"So what are you going to do?"

"About what?" Trish answered, pretending she didn't know what her friend was talking about.

Chrissy shot her a glare. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. Don't play stupid with me."

Trish chewed up the mouthful of nachos she had in her mouth and swallowed it. "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"Just what I said, I don't know." Trish stood up, "Thanks for lunch. I'm going to go take a shower now."

Chrissy watched as her friend disappeared down the hallway. "She's so bull-headed sometimes," she said to herself with a sigh, shaking her head.

* * *

Trish spent an extra long time in the shower. She made sure the water was piping hot and just let it run down her neck and back in hopes of soothing away some of her tension. When the water began cooling off, Trish quickly finished her shower and hopped out. She wrapped her long blonde hair up in a towel and then wrapped a towel around her body. She walked across the hallway to her bedroom and closed the door.

_Knock knock knock_

The soft knock caught Trish's attention. "Yeah?"

"Hey momma. I gotta get going for work. If you need anything, call me okay?" Chrissy called from the other side of the door.

"I'll be fine. Have a good day. I'll see you when you get home," Trish called back.

Trish listened for the soft footsteps of her friend leaving, then the opening of the front door, the closing of the front door, and the sound of the lock. Trish pulled out a pair of light pink cotton shorts, a white tank top, a pair of underwear, and a bra and got dressed. After getting dressed, she brushed out her hair and pulled it up into a messy bun. She laid back down on her bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in her own thoughts. A little while later she wandered into the living room and picked up her phone to see if John had answered, and just as she expected, he hadn't. She sighed and flopped down on the couch.

_Hey. Is Randy working? – T_

_Yeah, he's here. Why? – C_

_I dunno. Just asking. John still hasn't answered me and I don't think he's going to :( – T_

_Randy said John's home – C_

_Oh? – T_

_Call him ya jackass – C_

Trish chuckled softly at her friend's response. She backed out of her conversation with Chrissy and scrolled to John's name. Her finger hovered over his name while she internally debated her next move. _No, I'm not going to call him,_ Trish thought to herself. She stood up from the couch and headed to the door. She slid a pair flip-flops on, grabbed her purse, and headed to her car.

* * *

After an hour of aimless driving, Trish finally turned down a familiar street. Her stomach instantly began twisting in nervous knots. The closer she got to the house, the more nervous she became. She pulled up out front of the house and parked her car. She sat there for a few moments, trying to pull her nerves together. Taking a deep breath in, then exhaling it slowly, she reached for her door handle and pushed the door open. She got out, locked her car, and began slowly making her way up to the front door. When she got to the front door, she took another deep breath, and then rang the doorbell. She took a step back and waited nervously.

It seemed like hours passed in the few short seconds after she rang the doorbell. She could hear a soft rustling noise heading towards her. Immediately her heart began to race and her hands began to tremble. The door swung open and she was met by the sight of John standing in the doorway wearing only a pair of mesh shorts. She scanned her eyes up John's muscled body as he sleepily rubbed his eyes. After blinking twice, his eyes finally focused and he realized who was standing at his front door.

"Hey," she greeted him with a weak smile.

"Hi," he answered coolly. "What do you want?"

"I… Uhh… I was hoping we could talk," she stammered.

John frowned. "Is there really anything to talk about?"

The edge to John's voice cut right through her. Her heart sank. "Oh… Okay then. I'm sorry I bothered you. I'll just go." Trish spun on her heel to head back to her car.

"Wait," John called to her as she reached the first step.

Trish stopped and turned her head to look at him.

John sighed loudly. "If you want to talk, we can talk." He backed up a few steps and gestured for Trish to follow him inside.

She followed slightly behind John into the house and into the living room. When she caught up to him, he was already sitting on the couch with his feet kicked up on the coffee table. She stood there nervously picking at her nails for a few seconds. She could feel her anxiety level was through the roof now.

"You can sit if you want," John offered nonchalantly.

Trish took him up on his offer and walked around the coffee table and sat down on the opposite end of the couch. She sighed softly, preparing herself for what was to come. The tone of John's voice and the fact that he didn't seem to be particularly thrilled about her being there heightened her nervousness.

"Well?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the TV.

"Well… I… Umm… I came to talk to you about what happened the other day," she began.

John shook his head as his eyes darted from the TV to being fully focused on her. "Then you can just leave. There's really nothing to say about it. You told me everything I needed to know."

"That's the thing… I didn't tell you everything…"

"Short of telling me to keep dreaming, you told me everything I needed to know. I get it now…"

"But…" Trish started.

"You don't feel what I do. Case closed," John continued.

"You don't…"

John kept talking. "Look, when I saw you again for the first time… Every feeling I had ever had for you automatically reignited. The more time I spent with you, the stronger I felt. I know I hurt you in the past, but I promised you that I wouldn't do that again to you. And after that night I spent with you at your place… I guess…"

Without warning, Trish pulled herself up onto her knees, leaned forward, grabbed John's face, and pulled him into her. Her lips landed gently on his lips. John's head jerked back slightly in surprise. She softly traced his bottom lip with her tongue as she slid her arms around his neck. His lips betrayed him and involuntarily parted for her. She explored the warm depths of his mouth with her tongue. She could feel his body relax under her. He reached up with his arms and snaked them around her waist, pulling her closer to him. John smiled against her lips. Trish pulled her head back to look at him.

"What was that?" he asked with a grin.

"That was a 'shut up John'," she answered. "You wouldn't let me get a word in. I had to resort to drastic measures."

John chuckled. "Sorry. What were you trying to say before I rudely interrupted you?"

"Well first I wanted to apologize for our last conversation."

John nodded. "Apology accepted… Especially if you kiss me like that again," John answered with a lopsided smile.

Trish smiled and shook her head. "I also wanted to clear some things up."

"Clear what up?"

"It wasn't that I didn't want to see you John. In fact, it's the complete opposite…"

"You really did want to see me?" John asked, surprised by her answer. "Then why couldn't you just tell me that when I asked you to tell me what and how you felt?"

Trish looked down at the couch and sighed. "Well because… Well Jason never asked how I felt about anything. He never cared…"

"Trish, I'm not Jason," John answered softly.

"I know. It's just… Well… I've been so used to keeping everything to myself, that I did it to you. Jason never cared or wanted to hear anything I liked, what I wanted, how I felt, or what I thought about anything. It's just become an automatic reflex to stifle any and all emotion because in my head, I could still hear Jason telling me that what I want, think, and feel didn't matter."

"You know, that's a shitty way to have a relationship… Hell, that shouldn't even be considered as a relationship," John commented.

Trish nodded. "It barely was. I'm sorry I compared you to him and held you accountable for Jason's mistakes. That wasn't fair or right of me to do that to you."

"I guess I understand though. The encounter I had with that douchebag, I can see what kind of person he was. And I guess after dealing with someone like that for a long period of time, it just becomes like second nature."

"It was. It was just easier to keep my mouth shut and do whatever, wear whatever, or say whatever he wanted me to than to listen to him flip out over me having my own opinion about anything. And God forbid my opinion be different from his…"

John nodded. "I get where you're coming from but you have to remember now that I'm not Jason. I do care about what you think, how you feel, and what you want. You're aloud to have an opinion and it doesn't have to be the same as mine."

"I know," Trish answered softly.

"So are you ready to tell me how you feel?" John asked with a playful grin.

"Isn't it obvious?"

"No," John answered with the most oblivious look he could muster on his face.

Trish grinned and crawled onto John's lap and straddled his legs. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought her face to his. John closed his lips tightly. Trish looked at him with a confused expression.

"You're not getting off that easy. The whole point of this conversation was to get you to _tell_ me how you feel. I don't want you to _show_ me, I want you to _tell_ me. I want to hear it," he told her as he wrapped his arms around her waist tightly holding her in place.

Trish sighed softly and shook her head. "You're really going to make me do this?"

John nodded his head 'yes.'

"How I feel? Well… You were my first boyfriend, my first love, my first heartache… My first everything. I never really got over you. That's part of the reason I decided to pack up and get the hell out of West Newbury. I knew if I stayed there was a chance I'd run into you, and I didn't want to see you all happy in your new single college guy life. Or even worse, with your new girlfriend. I figured if I got the hell out of there, started over somewhere new… Where no one knew me… I'd eventually be able to forget about you."

"You took off all the way to Florida just to get away from me?" John asked, wincing slightly at her words.

She nodded. "After being down here for a little while, I met Jason. I hoped Jason and I would fall in love and have this happily ever after and that certainly didn't work. But being with Jason also never stopped me from thinking about _you_. Wondering where you were, what you were doing, if you were happy… I constantly found myself comparing things between Jason and I to things between you and I. Then after all these years I end up running into you again… I never thought that would happen. As soon as I saw you, every feeling I ever had for you came rushing back. Spending time with you… It made me feel like we were never away from each other. It was like we just picked back up where we left off… Without missing a beat. I was falling in love with you all over again…"

A smile spread across John's lips. "You're falling in love with me again?"

"Yes…"

"Was that so hard?" John teased with a big grin.

Trish rolled her eyes.

"That's all I wanted to hear… I just wanted to know how you felt."

"Now you know," Trish answered with a smile.

"It only took for me to break you arms and legs to get it out of ya!" John teased with a laugh.

Trish giggled. "What can I say? I'm bull-headed."

"You always were!" John suddenly took both of his hands and placed them on either side of her face. "I'm really glad you came today," he told her, looking deep into her eyes.

"Me… Too…" she sputtered, lost in his eyes.

"I'm glad you finally came clean to me about your feelings because just so you know, I'm falling in love with you too, but this time... I'm not going to fuck it up. So now we both know how the other feels, let's both push aside our fears about it and let's make this work. I know we can."

Trish nodded. "Yes... We can."


End file.
